Case: Freedom Network, USA v. President Donald J. Trump

Freedom Network, USA v. President Donald J. Trump et al.

ORDER AMENDED GENERAL ORDER 25-0024: GENERAL ORDER HOLDING IN ABEYANCE: CIVIL MATTERS INVOLVING THE UNITED STATES AS A PARTY: This matter is before the Court due to the lapse of congressional appropriations funding the federal government, including the Department of Justice and the United States Attorney's Office. Absent an appropriation, the United States represents that certain Department of Justice attorneys and employees of the federal government are prohibited from working, even on a voluntary basis, except in very limited circumstances, including "emergencies involving the safety of human life or the protection of property." 31 U.S.C. § 1342. Therefore, the lapse in appropriations requires a reduction in the workforce of the United States Attorney's Office and other federal agencies, particularly with respect to prosecution and defense of civil cases. The Court, in response, and with the intent to avoid any default or prejudice to the United States or other civil litigants occasioned by the lapse in funding, sua sponte enters this General Order. As a result of the cited workforce reductions, it is hereby ORDERED, effective October 1, 2025, that all civil litigation involving as a party the United States of America, its agencies, its officers or employees (whether in their individual or official capacity and whether current or former employees), and/or any other party represented by the Department of Justice or the United States Attorney's Office is immediately suspended, postponed, and held in abeyance continuing until funding for federal government operations is fully restored. The Court may renew or modify this General Order depending on developments in the stay period. The Court intends "civil litigation" to include all pending non-criminal cases in which the United States, its agencies, its officers or employees (whether in their individual or official capacity and whether current or former employees) is in any way a named party and any non-criminal cases in which the United States Attorney's Office or the Department of Justice is counsel of record. This includes, without limitation, all pending Social Security cases and all cases seeking monetary or equitable relief in which the United States is involved as a civil litigant. The General Order does not affect habeas corpus cases pending or filed under Chapter 153 of Title 28. This General Order suspends and continues, during the stay, any and all events and deadlines in the affected civil litigation (whether established by order, rule, or agreement), including but not limited to any scheduled proceedings, hearings, and/or discovery and pleading dates. No party will be required to take any steps in civil litigation affected until expiration of the stay. The Court warns litigants that this General Order does not purport to affect rights to, or deadlines concerning, appeal from any decision of this Court, which will continue to operate and issue orders in the normal course. Any litigant affected by this General Order may seek relief from the order by motion. The Court may, in any particular case, vary the effect or operation of this General Order by a separate order. The Court shall distribute this General Order: (a) by electronic service to all registered CM/ECF users; (b) by first-class mail to unregistered civil litigants, including pro se litigants, and to attorneys pending pro hac vice admission; and (c) by posting the General Order on the Court's public website. This General Order does not operate as a stay of any injunction or restraining order entered by any judge of this court. The Court shall clarify the status of case schedules upon expiration of the stay and dependent on the timing of the funding resolution. Signed by the Honorable Virginia M. Kendall on 10/2/2025. Mailed notice.(nh, ) (Entered: 10/15/2025)

COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND DECLARATORY RELIEF filed by Freedom Network, USA; Jury Demand. Filing fee $ 405, receipt number AILNDC-24187016. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit A, # 2 Exhibit B, # 3 Exhibit C)(Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 10/10/2025)

1 Exhibit A

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2 Exhibit B

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3 Exhibit C

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CIVIL Cover Sheet (Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 10/10/2025)

NOTIFICATION of Affiliates pursuant to Local Rule 3.2 by Freedom Network, USA (Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 10/10/2025)

case assigned

clerk's notice

CASE ASSIGNED to the Honorable John J. Tharp, Jr. Designated as Magistrate Judge the Honorable M. David Weisman. Case assignment: Random assignment. (Civil Category 3). (axk, )

CLERK'S NOTICE: Pursuant to Local Rule 73.1(b), a United States Magistrate Judge of this court is available to conduct all proceedings in this civil action. If all parties consent to have the currently assigned United States Magistrate Judge conduct all proceedings in this case, including trial, the entry of final judgment, and all post-trial proceedings, all parties must sign their names on the attached Consent To form. This consent form is eligible for filing only if executed by all parties. The parties can also express their consent to jurisdiction by a magistrate judge in any joint filing, including the Joint Initial Status Report or proposed Case Management Order. (axk, )

MOTION for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice on behalf of Freedom Network, USA by Rachel Stevens; Filing fee $ 150, receipt number AILNDC-24316234. (Stevens, Rachel) (Entered: 11/06/2025)

SUMMONS Issued (Court Participant) as to Pam Bondi, Office for Victims of Crime, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Management and Budget, Donald J Trump, U.S. Department of Justice, Russell Vought, U.S. Attorney, and U.S. Attorney General (Attachments: # 1 Summons, # 2 Summons, # 3 Summons, # 4 Summons, # 5 Summons, # 6 Summons, # 7 Summons)(man, ) (Entered: 11/07/2025)

MINUTE entry before the Honorable John J. Tharp, Jr:Attorney Stevens' motion for leave to appear pro hac vice 19 is granted. Counsel is directed to file an appearance on behalf of the plaintiff. Mailed notice (air, ) (Entered: 11/07/2025)

ATTORNEY Appearance for Plaintiff Freedom Network, USA by Rachel Stevens (Stevens, Rachel) (Entered: 11/11/2025)

MOTION for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice on behalf of Freedom Network, USA by Parker S Warrington, III; Filing fee $ 150, receipt number AILNDC-24330891. (Warrington, Parker) (Entered: 11/11/2025)

MOTION for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice on behalf of Freedom Network, USA by Keith J. Harrison; Filing fee $ 150, receipt number AILNDC-24331319. (Harrison, Keith) (Entered: 11/11/2025)

NOTICE by Freedom Network, USA re MOTION for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice on behalf of Freedom Network, USA by Parker S Warrington, III; Filing fee $ 150, receipt number AILNDC-24330891. 32 Corrected Motion for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice of Warrington Parker (Corrected as to admission date typographical error in Attachment A) (Warrington, Parker) (Entered: 11/12/2025)

MOTION for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice on behalf of Freedom Network, USA by Kathryn Youker; Filing fee $ 150, receipt number AILNDC-24335857. (Youker, Kathryn) (Entered: 11/12/2025)

MOTION for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice on behalf of Freedom Network, USA by Sabrina Asgari Talukder; Filing fee $ 150, receipt number AILNDC-24336280. (Talukder, Sabrina) (Entered: 11/12/2025)

MINUTE entry before the Honorable John J. Tharp, Jr:The motions for leave to appear pro hac vice 33, 35, 36 are granted. Additionally, Attorney Parker's corrected motion for leave to appear pro hac vice 34 is granted. The original motion 32 is denied as moot. All attorneys are directed to file appearances on behalf of the plaintiff. Mailed notice (air, ) (Entered: 11/13/2025)

NOTICE by Freedom Network, USA Notice of Filing of Motion for Reassignment (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit Motion for Reassignment, # 2 Exhibit Ex A to Motion for Reassignment)(Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 11/13/2025)

ORDER GENERAL ORDER 25-0028: RESETTING OF DEADLINES IN CIVIL MATTERS INVOLVING THE UNITED STATES AS A PARTY IT APPEARING THAT as a result of the partial federal government shutdown, this Court amended General Order 25-0024 suspending as of October 1, 2025, all civil litigation in which the United States of America, its agencies, its officers, or employees were parties, with the stated intention of clarifying schedules in such cases upon the expiration of the lapse in appropriations; and IT FURTHER APPEARING THAT appropriations having been restored to fund the Department of Justice and other Executive Branch agencies, with employees beginning to report for work beginning on November 13, 2025; accordingly IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the stay entered by General Order 25-0024 is hereby lifted, and any and all deadlines in affected civil cases (whether established by order, rule, or agreement.), including but not limited to any scheduled discovery and pleading dates, are extended by 49 days. The Court warns litigants that this General Order does not purport to affect rights to or deadlines concerning appeal from any decision of this Court. Any litigant affected by this General Order may seek relief from the order by motion. Trial dates in the affected cases will stand, although they may need to be adjusted in individual cases to account for the extension of other dates. The Court may, in any particular case, vary the effect or operation of this General Order by a separate ruling. The Court shall distribute this General Order: (a) by electronic service to all registered CM/ECF users; (b) by first-class mail to unregistered civil litigants, including pro se litigants, and to attorneys pending pro hac vice admission; and (c) by posting the General Order on the Court's public website. Signed by the Honorable Virginia M. Kendall on 11/14/2025: Mailed notice. (tg, ) (Entered: 11/14/2025)

MINUTE entry before the Honorable John J. Tharp, Jr:In light of General Order 25-0028, the plaintiff's deadline to effect service is extended to 2/26/2026. Mailed notice (air, ) (Entered: 11/18/2025)

REQUEST for Clerk of Court to refund filing fee in the amount of $150.00, receipt no. AILNDC-24335966, Freedom Network, USA v. President Donald J. Trump et al. (Youker, Kathryn) (Entered: 11/19/2025)

REFUND PROCESSED re REQUEST for Clerk of Court to refund filing fee in the amount of $150.00, receipt no. AILNDC-24335966, Freedom Network, USA v. President Donald J. Trump et al. (Youker, Kathryn) 41 (td, ) (Entered: 11/20/2025)

SUMMONS Returned Executed by Freedom Network, USA as to Office for Victims of Crime on 11/19/2025, answer due 12/10/2025. (Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 12/09/2025)

SUMMONS Returned Executed by Freedom Network, USA as to Russell Vought on 11/19/2025, answer due 12/10/2025. (Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 12/09/2025)

SUMMONS Returned Executed by Freedom Network, USA as to Anthony Boutros on 11/18/2025, answer due 12/9/2025. (Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 12/09/2025)

SUMMONS Returned Executed by Freedom Network, USA as to U.S. Department of Justice on 11/19/2025, answer due 12/10/2025. (Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 12/09/2025)

SUMMONS Returned Executed by Freedom Network, USA as to Office of Management and Budget on 11/25/2025, answer due 12/16/2025. (Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 12/09/2025)

SUMMONS Returned Executed by Freedom Network, USA as to Pam Bondi on 11/19/2025, answer due 12/10/2025. (Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 12/09/2025)

SUMMONS Returned Executed by Freedom Network, USA as to Donald J Trump on 11/25/2025, answer due 12/16/2025. (Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 12/09/2025)

SUMMONS Returned Executed by Freedom Network, USA as to Office of Justice Programs on 11/19/2025, answer due 12/10/2025. (Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 12/09/2025)

ATTORNEY Appearance for Plaintiff Freedom Network, USA by Jason Patrick Stiehl Notice of Appearance Anuj Vohra (Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 12/09/2025)

ATTORNEY Appearance for Plaintiff Freedom Network, USA by Jason Patrick Stiehl Notice of Appearance Keith Harrison (Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 12/09/2025)

ATTORNEY Appearance for Plaintiff Freedom Network, USA by Jason Patrick Stiehl (Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 12/09/2025)

MINUTE entry before the Honorable Matthew F. Kennelly: This case is set for an initial telephonic status hearing on 12/17/2025 at 9:00 AM, using call-in number 650-479-3207, access code 2305-915-8729. Plaintiff's counsel is directed to promptly provide notice of this order to Assistant United States Attorney Thomas Walsh (ILND-USAO). (mk) (Entered: 12/11/2025)

STATUS Report by Freedom Network, USA (Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 12/11/2025)

ATTORNEY Appearance for Plaintiff Freedom Network, USA by Kathryn Youker (Youker, Kathryn) (Entered: 12/14/2025)

ATTORNEY Appearance for Plaintiff Freedom Network, USA by Sabrina Asgari Talukder (Talukder, Sabrina) (Entered: 12/14/2025)

MOTION by Plaintiff Freedom Network, USA for leave to file excess pages Plaintiffs' Unopposed Motion to Enlarge Page Limitation (Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 12/15/2025)

MINUTE entry before the Honorable Matthew F. Kennelly: Plaintiff's motion for leave to file a 30 page preliminary injunction memorandum 58 is granted. Also, at the Court's instance, the telephonic status hearing set for 9:00 AM on 12/17/2025 is advanced to 8:50 AM on that same date, using call-in number 650-479-3207, access code 2305-915-8729. Plaintiff's counsel is directed to promptly provide notice of this order to Assistant United States Attorney Thomas Walsh. (mk) (Entered: 12/16/2025)

DESIGNATION of Patrick Walter Johnson as U.S. Attorney for Defendants Pam Bondi, Office for Victims of Crime, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Management and Budget, Donald J Trump, U.S. Department of Justice, Russell Vought (Johnson, Patrick) (Entered: 12/17/2025)

ATTORNEY Appearance for Plaintiff Freedom Network, USA by Aneel Lachman Chablani (Chablani, Aneel) (Entered: 12/17/2025)

DESIGNATION of Thomas P. Walsh as U.S. Attorney for Defendants Pam Bondi, Office for Victims of Crime, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Management and Budget, Donald J Trump, U.S. Department of Justice, Russell Vought (Walsh, Thomas) (Entered: 12/17/2025)

MINUTE entry before the Honorable Matthew F. Kennelly: Telephonic status hearing held on 12/17/2025. The motion for preliminary injunction is to be filed by 12/19/2025. Government's response is due 1/20/2026; plaintiff's reply is due 2/3/2026. The case is set for a telephonic status hearing on 2/5/2026 at 8:45 a.m. The following call-in number will be used for the hearing: 650-479-3207; access code 2305-915-8729. Persons granted remote access to proceedings are reminded of the general prohibition against photographing, recording, and rebroadcasting of court proceedings. Violation of these prohibitions may result in sanctions, including removal of court issued media credentials, restricted entry to future hearings, denial of entry to future hearings, or any other sanctions deemed necessary by the Court. Mailed notice. (mma, ) (Entered: 12/17/2025)

MOTION by Plaintiff Freedom Network, USA for preliminary injunction (Attachments: # 1 Appendix A, # 2 Declaration of Jean Bruggeman, # 3 Exhibit 1, # 4 Exhibit 2, # 5 Exhibit 3, # 6 Exhibit 4, # 7 Exhibit 5, # 8 Exhibit 6, # 9 Exhibit 7, # 10 Exhibit 8, # 11 Exhibit 9, # 12 Exhibit 10, # 13 Exhibit 11, # 14 Exhibit 12, # 15 Exhibit 13, # 16 Exhibit 14)(Stiehl, Jason) (Entered: 12/19/2025)

1 Appendix A

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2 Declaration of Jean Bruggeman

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3 Exhibit 1

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4 Exhibit 2

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5 Exhibit 3

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6 Exhibit 4

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7 Exhibit 5

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8 Exhibit 6

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9 Exhibit 7

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10 Exhibit 8

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11 Exhibit 9

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12 Exhibit 10

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13 Exhibit 11

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14 Exhibit 12

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15 Exhibit 13

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16 Exhibit 14

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ANNUAL REMINDER: Pursuant to Local Rule 3.2 (Notification of Affiliates), any nongovernmental party, other than an individual or sole proprietorship, must file a statement identifying all its affiliates known to the party after diligent review or, if the party has identified no affiliates, then a statement reflecting that fact must be filed. An affiliate is defined as follows: any entity or individual owning, directly or indirectly (through ownership of one or more other entities), 5% or more of a party. The statement is to be electronically filed as a PDF in conjunction with entering the affiliates in CM/ECF as prompted. As a reminder to counsel, parties must supplement their statements of affiliates within thirty (30) days of any change in the information previously reported. This minute order is being issued to all counsel of record to remind counsel of their obligation to provide updated information as to additional affiliates if such updating is necessary. If counsel has any questions regarding this process, this LINK will provide additional information. Signed by the Honorable Virginia M. Kendall on 12/31/2025: Mailed notice. (tg, ) (Entered: 01/01/2026)

MOTION by Defendant U.S. Department of Justice to amend/correct scheduling order regarding preliminary injunction motion (Johnson, Patrick) (Entered: 01/20/2026)

MINUTE entry before the Honorable Matthew F. Kennelly: At the Court's instance, the telephonic status hearing set for 2/5/2026 is vacated and advanced to 1/23/2026 at 8:40 AM, using call-in number 650-479-3207, access code 2305-915-8729. The motion to amend the schedule will be addressed at that time. (mk) (Entered: 01/21/2026)

MINUTE entry before the Honorable Matthew F. Kennelly: Telephonic status and motion hearings held on 1/23/2025. Defendant's motion to modify 66 is granted. Plaintiff's amended complaint is due 2/6/2026. The current motion by the plaintiff for preliminary injunction 64 is terminated as moot based on the anticipated filing of an amended complaint. Any new motion for preliminary injunction is to be filed by 2/20/2026. The response to motion for preliminary injunction is due 3/6/2026; the reply is due 3/20/2026. The telephonic status hearing set for 2/5/2026 is vacated and reset to 3/16/2026 at 8:45 a.m. The following call-in number will be used for the hearing: 650-479-3207; access code 2305-915-8729. Persons granted remote access to proceedings are reminded of the general prohibition against photographing, recording, and rebroadcasting of court proceedings. Violation of these prohibitions may result in sanctions, including removal of court issued media credentials, restricted entry to future hearings, denial of entry to future hearings, or any other sanctions deemed necessary by the Court. Mailed notice. (mma, ) (Entered: 01/23/2026)

Amended Complaint