Appeals court declines to pause sanctions against Trump lawyers in IRS settlement

Key Points:

• A US appeals court declined to immediately block sanctions against Donald Trump's lawyers, who were accused of misusing the court system in a lawsuit Trump filed against the IRS.
• The 11th Circuit Court upheld a Miami judge's ruling that Trump improperly filed a $10 billion lawsuit to gain personal benefits, including a now-abandoned $1.8 billion fund for his allies and protections from tax audits.
• The judge referred one of Trump's lawyers to Florida legal disciplinary authorities and barred Trump, his sons, and his company from citing the settlement in future legal cases.
• Trump's legal team and the Justice Department argued the ruling violated First Amendment free speech rights, but the appeals court found the restrictions were not a final appealable order and did not infringe on free speech.
• The lawsuit stemmed from Trump's claims that the IRS failed to prevent leaks of his tax records, with a settlement that was ultimately scrapped due to bipartisan opposition in Congress.