Trump Asks Supreme Court To Revive Clinton Lawsuit Over 2016 Race After Nearly $1M Sanctions

Donald Trump has asked the US Supreme Court to overturn nearly $1 million in sanctions and revive his lawsuit accusing Hillary Clinton and others of trying to damage his 2016 presidential bid by tying it to Russia.

The president filed a petition on Friday, 9 October, seeking to reinstate claims that federal courts have already dismissed and which led to an order that he, his lawyer Alina Habba and her law firm jointly pay $937,989.39 in legal fees and costs.

Trump Seeks To Revive 2016 Case After Nearly $1M Sanctions

Trump's lawyers argue that the lower courts went too far by penalising the president and Habba for pursuing claims the judges rejected. In the filing, they said the rulings reflected 'a deeply troubling trend of federal courts using sanctions and disciplinary threats to punish the president and his lawyers for legitimate legal positions that those courts (erroneously) reject,' according to Reuters.

They added: 'The court's intervention is necessary to protect the presidency, and to prevent judicial disagreement from becoming a license to punish its advocates.'

Why Trump's Clinton Lawsuit Has Returned

Trump first sued Clinton, former FBI director James Comey, former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele, the Democratic National Committee and others in 2022. He alleged that they conspired to damage his presidential bid by amplifying claims that his campaign co-ordinated with Russia.

US District Judge Donald Middlebrooks dismissed the amended complaint in September 2022. He found that Trump's claims were legally insufficient and that some had been filed too late.

Middlebrooks later imposed sanctions. He described the complaint as a 'two-hundred-page political manifesto' and concluded that it reflected an attempt to advance a political narrative through litigation.

In November 2025, the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of the claims against most defendants and affirmed the sanctions. However, it vacated the dismissal of claims against Orbis Business Intelligence Ltd and directed the district court to dismiss those claims without prejudice because it lacked jurisdiction.

Trump is now asking the Supreme Court to review those rulings. His legal team says the sanctions threaten the ability of presidents and their lawyers to litigate contested political claims.

Inside Trump's Supreme Court Petition

Trump filed his petition on Friday, 9 October, after Justice Clarence Thomas granted two extensions to the deadline. The Supreme Court's publicly available docket had not yet listed the petition when checked.

The petition asks the Supreme Court to review decisions that have already been upheld on appeal. Trump's lawyers contend that the sanctions punish legitimate advocacy, while the lower courts found the underlying claims legally inadequate and, in parts, frivolous.

The Supreme Court must first decide whether to grant the petition. It has not yet indicated whether it will hear the case.

The Russia Allegations at the Heart of the Case

Trump's suit was built around his long-running objection to allegations that his 2016 campaign co-ordinated with Russia. He argued that Clinton, Comey, Steele, the DNC and other defendants conspired to promote those claims and damage his candidacy.

The allegations were made against the backdrop of separate investigations into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Special counsel Robert Mueller's 2019 report concluded that Russia interfered in the election but did not establish that members of Trump's campaign conspired or co-ordinated with the Russian government in that interference.

A subsequent report by special counsel John Durham criticised aspects of the FBI's investigation.

The filing came after Trump made separate remarks about his political opponents while discussing the possibility of another impeachment if Democrats regained control of Congress. The comments were not part of the court filing and do not determine whether the Supreme Court will agree to hear the case.

'I could have done very bad things to Hillary Clinton. I could have done very, very bad things to Joe Biden,' Trump told reporters.

What the Supreme Court Could Do Next

The US Supreme Court has not indicated whether it will hear Trump's petition. The dismissal of the remaining claims and the sanctions remain in effect unless the relevant orders are overturned or otherwise changed.

Trump, Habba and her law firm were held jointly and severally liable for $937,989.39 in legal fees and costs. The 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the sanctions in 2025, while vacating the dismissal of claims against one defendant on jurisdictional grounds.

The Supreme Court must now decide whether to grant the petition. If it declines to hear the case, the lower courts' rulings will stand. If it agrees to review the dispute, the justices will determine which legal questions, if any, warrant further consideration.