Hunter Biden has dropped his lawsuit against two Internal Revenue Service (IRS) whistleblowers who publicly disclosed details of his tax investigation.
The lawsuit, filed in 2023, was dismissed with prejudice on Wednesday, meaning it cannot be refiled.
Newsweek contacted the Treasury Department via email for comment.
Why It Matters
This is the latest turn in the ongoing legal and political saga surrounding Biden, 55, whose legal issues related to tax evasion and unlawful firearm possession were featured in the 2024 presidential campaign.
The whistleblowers claim that the dismissal “tells you everything you need to know about who was right and who was wrong.” However, they have expressed frustration at not being able to fight Biden, the son of former President Joe Biden, in court.
What To Know
This lawsuit hinged on IRS whistleblowers Gary Shapley and Joe Ziegler. Shapley was an IRS supervisory special agent and Ziegler was an agent in 2023, when they gave statements to Congress and to the media accusing the Justice Department of mishandling the investigation into Biden’s tax returns and finances.
Their testimony helped derail a previously negotiated plea deal that would have resolved the matter with misdemeanor tax charges and a gun diversion agreement.
After the agreement collapsed, Biden was charged with nine counts tied to unpaid taxes between 2016 and 2019—totaling $1.4 million—which he later paid. He was convicted on tax and gun charges.
Biden retaliated with his suit, accusing the two IRS agents of violating federal secrecy laws by revealing information from his tax returns and laptop.
Biden did not provide a reason for ending the suit, but he previously cited financial hardship in withdrawing a separate civil action. The dismissal comes about a month after his legal team filed a motion to withdraw. He also received a full and unconditional presidential pardon from his father in December.
Shapley was appointed to interim IRS commissioner for 48 hours in April after being backed for the job by Elon Musk. He was then demoted, before being dismissed after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent asked President Donald Trump to remove him from that position.
Shapley remained at the Treasury in another role for the IRS, and the job of interim commissioner was taken by Michael Faulkender, who received support from Bessent for the job.
What People Are Saying
Gary Shapley and Joe Ziegler, in a joint statement on Wednesday: “It’s always been clear that the lawsuit was an attempt to intimidate us. However, we were always motivated by doing the right thing, defending our work, and honoring our duty to the American people. Intimidation and retaliation were never going to work. We truly wanted our day in court to provide the complete story, but it appears Mr. Biden was afraid to actually fight this case in a court of law after all. His voluntary dismissal of the case tells you everything you need to know about who was right and who was wrong.”
What Happens Next
With the lawsuit’s dismissal, it remains to be seen whether the Trump administration will launch further inquiries into the Biden family’s finances.
The post Hunter Biden Drops Lawsuit Against IRS Employees: ‘Afraid to Fight’ appeared first on Newsweek.
