District Court grants Commission’s motion to dismiss in CLC v. FEC (22-1976)

On December 8, 2022, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed without prejudice the Campaign Legal Center’s challenge to the Commission’s dismissal of their administrative complaint against Donald J. Trump for President, Inc., and Trump Make America Great Again Committee (collectively, Trump Committees). The court found the dismissal of the administrative complaint was unreviewable and outside the reach of judicial review.

Background

On July 28, 2020, and supplemented on January 28, 2021, the plaintiff filed an administrative complaint with the Commission that alleged that the Trump Committees violated the Federal Election Campaign Act (the Act) by failing to properly disclose hundreds of millions of dollars in payments to subvendors and staff made through American Made Media Consultants, LLC, and Parscale Strategy, LLC.

On May 10, 2022, the Commission divided 3-3 on whether to find reason to believe that the Trump Committees violated the Act. The Commission then voted 4-2 to close the file. On July 8, 2022, the plaintiff filed suit in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia challenging the dismissal of its administrative complaint against the Trump Committees.

Analysis

The Commission argued that its dismissal of the administrative complaint against the Trump Committees was unreviewable, noting that the three Commissioners who voted against finding reason to believe invoked prosecutorial discretion. The Commission contended that under Circuit and Supreme Court precedent, that invocation placed the dismissal of plaintiff’s complaint outside the reach of judicial review. The court agreed and granted the Commission’s Motion to Dismiss.

Resources

• CLC v. FEC (22-1976) litigation page