Although the Justice Department has a long history of successful legal actions against CIA agents and others who reveal national security secrets to the public, cases outside that arena are few, usually involving police officers who leak confidential information related to pending investigations.
Many former White House advisers have published memoirs, without legal repercussions. There is no known case of a first lady adviser facing legal consequences for disclosing information learned at the White House.
The lawsuit against Winston Wolkoff alleged that by publishing the book, she violated her “fiduciary duty” and a confidentiality agreement she signed with a contracting White House official in August 2017.
The one-page lawsuit closing the case did not provide any explanation for the department’s withdrawal.
A DOJ official made only a brief comment about the change. “The Department assessed the case and concluded that dismissal without prejudice served the best interests of the United States based on the facts and the law,” said the official, who asked not to be named.
Some former Justice Department officials and outside lawyers said the lawsuit was unwise because it threatened to result in legal decisions that could undermine the department’s litigation position in more serious cases. The suit did not cite any statute that would protect the information in question or authorize the White House to sign contracts like that of Winston Wolkoff, although President Donald Trump had a long history of demanding them from campaign officers, Trump organization officials and his colleagues. personal advisors.
Winston Wolkoff and his lawyers did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the department’s decision to reverse the course.
Although the Biden administration has appointed certain interim officials to administer the Department of Justice until Biden’s appointments are confirmed, so far only four nominees have been announced and none have been scheduled for a hearing, including appointed attorney general Merrick Garland. The notice on Monday was submitted under the direction of Brian Boynton, who has served as acting chief of the Department’s Civil Division since shortly after Biden was sworn in.
The lawsuit against Winston Wolkoff was opened last October under the acting chief of the Civil Division at the time, Jeffrey Clark. The hitherto little-known Clark made headlines last month when the New York Times reported that he was engaged in discussions with President Donald Trump to take over the leadership of the department in order to give his official support to efforts in Georgia to topple the election results there.
The extraordinary plan to remove the top Justice Department employees and replace them with Clark has never been implemented. He contested unspecified aspects of press reports on the matter, but said he is hampered by the attorney-client privilege of providing more details.