Let's Do This: All the Lawsuits Against the Trump Administration, Listed

Here are lawsuits on 15 different issues that I could find news stories about

Photo by Tingey Injury Law Firm on Unsplash

It can be unsettling to watch Donald Trump, and his minions, rapidly engage in what seems to be widespread illegal activity. This is especially the case when, as my colleague Matt Kerbel discussed yesterday in his article "The Trump Crime Spree," the primary means of stopping these illegal activities—lawsuits, the upcoming government funding negotiations, and the 2026 and 2028 elections—are either slow-moving or will not take place for some time.

However, that is just the way it is right now, and we have to deal with it: Trump gets to move fast, and our only real means of stopping him moves slowly.

That said, while slow, attempts to block Trump are moving. In fact, they might be moving a lot more than you realize. To demonstrate this point, I decided to compile a long list of all the lawsuits that have currently been filed against the Trump administration to block executive orders and actions that might be illegal. My thinking is that in seeing this list, you might be comforted by its length and reassured that a lot of people are taking meaningful action to stop him.

Please, read through the entire list of lawsuits, and add any that I may have missed in the comments. Also, consider following the links to the websites of the groups filing these lawsuits, so that you can learn more about them and support their efforts if you are able and willing to do so.

(Note: These lawsuits are listed in no particular order.)

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1. Trump's DEI orders. Several groups, including “[t]he National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education and the American Association of University Professors, along with the city of Baltimore and a restaurant group, are asking the courts to block the implementation of the executive orders [relating to DEI] due to President Trump allegedly exceeding his authority under the Constitution.”

2. Removal of health data from government websites. “A liberal-leaning medical advocacy group is suing over the removal of health data from government websites, the latest in a series of lawsuits pushing back against the Trump administration’s shakeup of the federal government. Doctors for America filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the Office of Personnel Management, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services.”

3. Ending refugee asylum. The ACLU is suing the Trump administration over its attempt to end refugee asylum.

4. Retribution against FBI agents. In two separate lawsuits, anonymous FBI agents are suing the Justice Department over “efforts to develop a list of employees involved in those inquiries that they fear could be a precursor to mass firings.”

5. Birthright citizenship. In multiple lawsuits, numerous individuals, nonprofits and 22 Democratic attorneys general have sought to block Trump's executive order ending birthright citizenship for the children of undocumented immigrants. They have already succeeded in achieving a nationwide injunction blocking the order.

6. National Labor Relations Board. Gwynne Wilcox, a member of the National Labor Relations Board, was fired by Trump on January 27. She has filed a lawsuit contesting the legality of her firing.

7. Schedule F. Two unions representing government workers, AFGE and AFSCME, have filed lawsuits to block Trump's executive order that would reclassify large numbers of federal employees under Schedule F, which would make it easier for Trump to fire them. You can read more about these lawsuits at Reuters and Democracy Docket.

8. Federal funding freeze. At least two federal judges have issued injunctions blocking the Trump administration's various funding freezes of federal spending. Numerous groups have joined in these lawsuits, including states attorneys general.

9. Legal assistance for asylum seekers. In response to a lawsuit from the Amica Center for Immigrant Rights for other nonprofits, the Department of Justice has already reversed one of Trump's executive orders halting legal aid for asylum seekers.

10. DOGE access to sensitive data. The Alliance for Retired Americans, AFGE, and SEIU have filed lawsuits against the Treasury Department to block the Department of Government Efficiency's access to sensitive data.

11. Gender-affirming care. PFLAG and GLMA have filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration for halting funding for gender affirming care for people under 19. 

12. Sanctuary Cities. According to Newsweek, a group of Chicago-based immigrant groups have filed a lawsuit against Trump administration guidance instructing the Department of Justice to take action against sanctuary cities.

13. The existence of DOGE. A group called National Security Counselors has filed a lawsuit challenging the very existence of the Department of Government Efficiency. Additional lawsuits against the existence of DOGE have been filed by Public Citizen and the American Public Health Association.

14. Transgender servicemembers. GLAAD and other groups have filed a lawsuit against Trump's order banning transgender Americans from serving openly in the military. 

15. Buyout offer for federal employees. AFGE, which has clearly been quite busy with lawsuits against the Trump administration, has filed suit against the Office of Personnel management for the buyout offer sent to many government employees over email in the earliest days of the Trump administration.

These are the 15 lawsuits or groups of lawsuits I could find news stories about as of 4:15 PM ET, Wednesday, February 5. It would not be surprising if more had been filed already, or that more were filed between when I wrote this article and when it was published. Many more lawsuits will be forthcoming, and soon.

As you can see, there is a lot of legal action against the Trump administration right now. Further, a few of these lawsuits have already made real progress, winning injunctions and/or reversals of Trump administration policy. My hope is that this will provide readers of this article with some solace, during what has been a very difficult time for many. 

There was a passage I recently read in a Politico article about the legal resistance to Trump that, while referring specifically to federal employees, I believe applies to how many grassroots activists opposed to Trump will feel as the days and weeks move forward:

“Federal employees around the country are surely feeling Trump’s orders as body blows, as he likely intended,” said Daniel Richman, a lawyer and former adviser to FBI leadership. “But once the immediate shock at his extraordinary power claims wears off, I doubt they will all be cowed. Rather, they will be the source of litigation that all but the most die-hard Trumpist judges will take seriously.”

Things may seem overwhelming right now, but eventually that feeling will wear off. When it does, I doubt you will feel cowed. Instead, your support of the groups leading the legal resistance to Trump will be crucial in the many legal victories which are to come.

At Matt noted in his post "Whirlwind," we need to stay steady. Learn about the lawsuits against the Trump administration and, if you are able to do so, support some of the groups undertaking this crucial work.

If you are looking for one group in particular to support, allow me to recommend the Democratic Attorneys General Association (DAGA), the national party committee dedicated to supporting Democratic states attorneys general in elections around the country. Over the next four years, no group or groups will be more active in the lawsuits against the Trump administration than Democratic states attorneys general.

Please, split a donation of $10 between the the Democratic Attorneys General Association (DAGA) and Bowers News Media PAC, to support our shared goals of fighting back against the Trump administration to protect democracy and the rule of law.