WASHINGTON — The Justice Department has been discussing settlements with two former officials from Donald Trump’s first term who — like the president — claim they’re owed major payouts from the U.S. government as victims of politically motivated actions.

The administration has been in talks since at least late summer to resolve lawsuits brought by Trump’s first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, and former senior White House lawyer Stefan Passantino, according to court filings. Flynn is seeking $50 million for what he alleges was a wrongful prosecution, while Passantino says a House committee probing the 2020 election harmed his reputation by leaking private information.

The negotiations mark a shift from the Justice Department’s position during the Biden administration, when government lawyers successfully fought both cases. Flynn lost the first round of his civil damages lawsuit last year. The U.S. attorney’s office in Atlanta was defending a judge’s decision to toss out Passantino’s claims as recently as June.

By September, though, lawyers in Flynn and Passantino’s cases had notified courts about the settlement talks. The developments are the latest example of how the administration is seeking to provide legal relief and potentially taxpayer-funded compensation for those Trump considers aligned with him or wronged by his perceived political enemies.

The U.S. government’s process for handling claims for monetary damages drew fresh attention after The New York Times reported last month that Trump is seeking $230 million in compensation for past investigations into his 2016 campaign and his handling of classified material after he left the White House in 2021. Trump told reporters that the Justice Department “probably” owes him “a lot of money” but said he’d give it “to charity” or use it to pay for White House renovations.

The Justice Department reached a nearly $5 million settlement this year with the family of Ashli Babbitt, who was shot and killed by a police officer inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, amid demonstrations and rioting by Trump’s supporters over Congress’ certification of President Joe Biden’s election win. The government had been arguing to dismiss some of the estate’s claims before Trump took office.

On Wednesday, the president signed a spending deal to end the shutdown that would let Republican senators sue the federal government for potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars if former special counsel Jack Smith subpoenaed their phone records without notice during the criminal probe into Trump’s efforts to undo his 2020 election loss.

Justice Department official Ed Martin announced this week that Trump signed a largely symbolic pardon for dozens of individuals who backed him in 2020, including conservative lawyers Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell, John Eastman and Jeffrey Clark. On Trump’s first day in office, he granted clemency to more than 1,500 people charged or convicted in connection with the Jan. 6 attack.

Settlement talks

Court filings don’t describe what terms might be on the table for Flynn and Passantino. A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment on the settlement talks or the status of Trump’s administrative claims as described in the Times report.

The two men have the same lawyer, Jesse Binnall, who has also represented Trump over the years. Binnall provided statements but didn’t elaborate on the discussions. He said he hoped mediation “is a step toward justice” for Flynn.

“Rogue FBI actors orchestrated a politically motivated hoax to attempt to shatter his life, all while staging a soft coup against President Trump, draining millions in lost opportunities and legal fees from Flynn while the government lavished payouts on those very bad-faith saboteurs,” he wrote.

Binnall said that Passantino “seeks accountability” and that his “30-year career of service and integrity was unblemished until zealots on the January 6 Unselect Committee peddled fabricated claims against him to advance a political agenda. Their actions destroyed his reputation, threatened his livelihood, and cost him millions — while protecting their enablers.”

Flynn and Passantino filed suit in 2023. Flynn alleged he was wrongfully prosecuted by former Justice Department special counsel Robert Mueller, who investigated Russian interference in the 2016 election and, separately, whether there was a connection to Trump’s campaign. Trump never faced charges but he’s frequently criticized the probe and his administration is now investigating whether it was part of a conspiracy against his presidency.

Flynn initially pleaded guilty to lying about his conversations with a Russian official but later fought the prosecution. Trump pardoned him in late 2020. A federal judge in Florida dismissed Flynn’s damages lawsuit in December 2024, but gave him a chance to revise his complaint. Both sides asked for extensions this year, culminating with the disclosure of settlement discussions. On Nov. 5, the government asked to again pause deadlines due to the government shutdown, and noted the pending settlement talks.

Passantino served as deputy White House counsel from 2017 to 2018 and then returned to private practice. He represented several witnesses in the congressional investigation into the 2020 election, including former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson, whose legal bills were covered by a Trump-affiliated political action committee.

Hutchinson eventually changed lawyers and delivered explosive testimony against Trump during a televised hearing in 2022. Passantino accused members and staff of the Jan. 6 committee of violating his privacy by leaking nonpublic information to orchestrate a “false story” in the media that he’d advised Hutchinson to provide misleading testimony. He denied the allegation.

A federal judge in Georgia tossed Passantino’s case in January and he appealed. Binnall asked for an extension in September, citing settlement talks over the previous month. His next filing in the appeals court is due Nov. 18.

Passantino is a principal at a Washington-based lobbying shop. The New York Times reported last year that legal ethics regulators dismissed complaints against him in connection with his work with Hutchinson. Flynn, a conservative activist, was appointed by Trump earlier this year to serve on the board of visitors for the US Military Academy.

“They will make our Country proud,” Trump posted at the time.

Jan. 6 claims

The administration hasn’t approved all claims with a political nexus to Trump. The Justice Department is fighting a lawsuit filed by a group of Jan. 6 defendants affiliated with the far-right Proud Boys group who received clemency from Trump. They’re seeking more than $100 million for what they contend was a “malicious” prosecution effort. A federal judge in Florida hasn’t ruled on the government’s August motion to dismiss the case.

Some Jan. 6 defendants have filed administrative claims with federal agencies seeking damages for how they were treated in the course of investigations, prosecutions, and imprisonments. Mark McCloskey, a lawyer who says he represents more than 450 Jan. 6 defendants, said in an interview he was frustrated that claims were rejected so far for “spurious” procedural defects.

McCloskey said he’s preparing to submit hundreds more claims and was “encouraged” by the latest pardons. The St. Louis-based lawyer gained notoriety — and support from Trump — after he and his wife faced state charges for pointing guns at protesters in 2020; they later received gubernatorial pardons.

“Despite the new administration, the DOJ has been very hostile to these claims,” he said.

A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment.

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