The U.S. Department of Justice agreed in March 2026 to pay former National Security Adviser Michael T. Flynn $1.25 million to settle his malicious prosecution lawsuit tied to the Russia investigation. The Michael Flynn DOJ settlement was disclosed in a court filing in Tampa, Florida, on March 25, 2026, and resolved a Federal Tort Claims Act case Flynn had filed three years earlier seeking at least $50 million in damages.1New York Times. Michael Flynn DOJ Settlement Trump The payment came after the Justice Department reversed the position it had taken under the Biden administration, when it fought the suit and won an outright dismissal in federal court.
What Flynn Sued Over
Flynn filed his civil complaint on March 3, 2023, in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida. The case, Flynn v. United States (No. 8:23-cv-00485), was assigned to Judge Mary Stenson Scriven.2CourtListener. Flynn v. United States He brought the suit under the Federal Tort Claims Act, alleging malicious prosecution in connection with the false-statements charge Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s office brought against him in 2017. Flynn had pleaded guilty to that charge, then moved to withdraw the plea; the Justice Department under Attorney General William Barr later asked to drop the case in May 2020, and President Donald Trump pardoned Flynn on November 25, 2020.3Trump White House Archives. Statement Regarding Executive Grant of Clemency for General Michael T Flynn
Flynn sought at least $50 million and described the prosecution as “a coordinated effort to pursue an innocent man as part of a broader campaign to undermine President Trump and his administration.”4CNN. Michael Flynn Settlement Justice Department He was represented by attorney Jesse Binnall.5Washington Examiner. DOJ Settles With Michael Flynn Wrongful Prosecution
How the Case Reached a Settlement
The Biden-era Justice Department contested the lawsuit at every step. It first tried to move the case out of Tampa, which Judge Scriven denied in June 2023, then moved to dismiss on jurisdictional grounds and for failure to state a claim.2CourtListener. Flynn v. United States On December 10, 2024, a federal judge dismissed Flynn’s complaint in its entirety, finding he had not established the elements of a malicious prosecution claim.6House Judiciary Committee Democrats. Raskin Letter to DOJ Regarding Flynn Settlement Flynn filed an amended complaint and the litigation continued into 2025.7Virginia Lawyers Weekly. DOJ Settles Flynn Lawsuit for 1.25 Million
Once the Trump administration returned to office, the department changed course. Rather than continue defending from what House Judiciary Democrats later described as a “winning litigating position,” the DOJ agreed to pay $1.25 million.6House Judiciary Committee Democrats. Raskin Letter to DOJ Regarding Flynn Settlement The agreement was disclosed in a court filing on March 25, 2026.8Bloomberg. DOJ Agrees to Pay Ex Trump Adviser Michael Flynn in Settlement
What the Settlement Does Not Cover
The $1.25 million agreement resolves the Florida FTCA case only. Flynn has a separate lawsuit pending in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims over the garnishment of his military retirement pay, which was not part of the deal. The Justice Department has reportedly signaled it may settle that case as well.9Lawfare. U.S. Government Agrees to 1.25 Million Settlement in Michael Flynn Suit
How the Parties Framed the Deal
A Justice Department spokeswoman called the settlement “an important step in redressing” a “historic injustice,” accusing officials involved in the original Russia investigation of abusing their power.1New York Times. Michael Flynn DOJ Settlement Trump Flynn said the deal was a “meaningful step toward righting a profound wrong” but added that no dollar amount could undo the damage the prosecution caused.4CNN. Michael Flynn Settlement Justice Department Binnall said the department was “doing more than simply cutting a check” and was “admitting that General Flynn was seriously wronged.”5Washington Examiner. DOJ Settles With Michael Flynn Wrongful Prosecution
Congressional Investigation
On April 6, 2026, Representative Jamie Raskin, ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, opened a formal investigation. In a letter to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, Raskin called the payment an “unlawful abuse of public trust” and “an intentional conversion of public funds for private, political gain.”10House Judiciary Committee Democrats. Ranking Member Raskin Launches Investigation Into 1.25 Million Taxpayer Payout for Michael Flynn He demanded all internal memoranda, communications with Flynn’s legal team, and records of any White House involvement in the settlement decision by April 20, 2026.6House Judiciary Committee Democrats. Raskin Letter to DOJ Regarding Flynn Settlement
Raskin argued the payment may violate the “collusive lawsuit doctrine,” a legal principle barring the government from settling claims without a good-faith assessment of liability, and suggested it could implicate federal criminal statutes on the misuse of public money.6House Judiciary Committee Democrats. Raskin Letter to DOJ Regarding Flynn Settlement The central objection: a federal court had already thrown out Flynn’s complaint, and the government paid anyway.
Part of a Broader Pattern
Raskin’s letter placed the Flynn deal alongside a wave of FTCA claims from Trump allies. Roughly 400 pardoned January 6 defendants have filed FTCA claims seeking between $1 million and $10 million each, and the DOJ has “conspicuously failed to reject” them despite questions about the statute of limitations, according to the letter.6House Judiciary Committee Democrats. Raskin Letter to DOJ Regarding Flynn Settlement Five convicted Proud Boys leaders separately filed a $100 million malicious prosecution suit.11BBC. Proud Boys Leaders File Lawsuit Against DOJ
President Trump himself filed a $230 million FTCA claim tied to the 2022 FBI search of Mar-a-Lago and the Russia investigation, along with a $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS over leaked tax returns.12KERA News. Trump Would Like the Government He Leads to Pay Him Billions Trump later dropped the IRS suit in exchange for the creation of a $1.776 billion “anti-weaponization fund” intended to compensate people the government had allegedly targeted.13Courthouse News. Trump Drops 10 Billion Lawsuit Against IRS
Background on the Underlying Prosecution
The prosecution Flynn’s suit targeted grew out of his late-December 2016 phone calls with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak, in which he discussed U.S. sanctions and a pending UN Security Council resolution on Israeli settlements.14Stanford Law School. DOJ Drops Charges Against Former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn Flynn denied the substance of those exchanges when FBI agents interviewed him in January 2017, and he pleaded guilty in November 2017 to making false statements. He moved to withdraw the plea in January 2020, and in May 2020 the DOJ asked the court to dismiss the charges, arguing the false statements were not “material” and the interview itself lacked a proper basis.15New York Times. Michael Flynn Case Dropped Judge Emmet Sullivan had not ruled on that motion when Trump’s pardon in November 2020 mooted the criminal case.
Documents released during the plea-withdrawal fight fueled the argument Flynn later carried into civil court. They included handwritten notes attributed to FBI counterintelligence chief Bill Priestap asking, “What’s urgent? Truth/Admission or to get him to lie, so we can prosecute him or get him fired?”16Lawfare. Flynn Redux What Those FBI Documents Really Show They also showed the FBI had drafted a memo on January 4, 2017, proposing to close its investigation of Flynn after finding “no derogatory information,” before leadership reversed course after learning of the Kislyak calls.17Senate Judiciary Committee (Grassley). Grassley Lt Gen Michael Flynn and Russia Investigation The DOJ has cited that history to explain the settlement; the House Judiciary Democrats have cited the December 2024 dismissal to argue the record did not justify paying anything at all.