Filed Date: May 28, 2026
Clearinghouse coding in progress
[This summary is temporary while we research the case]. On May 28, 2026, the plaintiff, a former U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) employee and co-founder of the "Mueller, She Wrote" podcast, filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California against the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, the Anti-Weaponization Fund, and the United States of America. The plaintiff alleged that she was investigated by the VA in August 2019 because of her public criticism of President Trump through her podcast, and she was later terminated from her position. As such, she believed that she was subject to government "weaponization" during the first Trump term, and that she may be eligible to file a claim with the newly established Anti-Weaponization Fund.
The Fund was created pursuant to a May 18, 2026 settlement agreement, resolving a federal lawsuit filed by President Trump and others on January 29, 2026, as well as two administrative claims under the Federal Tort Claims Act. Under that settlement, the Attorney General issued a Fund Establishment Order allocating $1,776,000,000 to the Fund, which was to be administered by a five-member commission appointed by the Attorney General, with members removable by the President, and was authorized to provide monetary relief and formal apologies to claimants alleging government "lawfare" and "weaponization."
The plaintiff asserted a single claim under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), alleging that the defendants established the Fund without publishing notice in the Federal Register or providing an opportunity for public comment as required by 5 U.S.C. § 553, thereby depriving her of the ability to comment on the Fund's definitions, eligibility criteria, and other matters affecting her financial and due process interests. She sought declaratory relief, vacatur of the Fund Establishment Order and DOJ Notice, temporary and permanent injunctive relief, attorneys' fees, and costs.
Summary Authors
(6/7/2026)
For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73408559/parties/gill-v-united-states-department-of-justice/
Bencivengo, Cathy Ann (California)
Hutchison, Kimberly Sue (California)
Joshi, Nandan M. (California)
Zieve, Allison Marcy (California)
CV, U S (California)
See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73408559/gill-v-united-states-department-of-justice/
Last updated June 8, 2026, 3:06 a.m.
State / Territory:
Case Type(s):
Public Benefits/Government Services
Special Collection(s):
Trump Administration 2.0: Challenges to the Government
Key Dates
Filing Date: May 28, 2026
Case Details
Other Dockets:
Southern District of California 3:26-cv-03283
Case Summary of Gill v. United States Department of Justice, Civil Rights Litig. Clearinghouse, https://clearinghouse.net/case/48202/ (last updated 6/7/2026).