A settlement was agreed to Friday in a $20 million defamation lawsuit brought by IRS whistleblowers Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler against Hunter Biden’s attorney, Abbe Lowell.
The lawsuit, filed in September 2024, accused Lowell of acting with “clear malice” and harming the reputations of the IRS employees investigating the former first son when he alleged to the media that they had illegally leaked Hunter’s private tax information.
The case was dismissed by a federal judge in Washington, DC, last month, but the whistleblowers had been considering an appeal.
As part of the settlement, all parties agreed to no longer pursue further litigation and Lowell acknowledged that Shapely and Ziegler were authorized “to make disclosures of otherwise confidential tax information about the investigation of Hunter Biden to the tax committees in Congress.”
Hunter’s attorney also acknowledged that Shapley and Ziegler “believed they acted in good faith to follow the law and to limit their remarks to information that had already been lawfully disclosed by others, and if so, were not disclosing confidential information.”
The whistleblowers, meanwhile, agreed that Lowell “believed that he made good faith legal arguments based on the case law and acted at all times appropriately to vigorously defend his client.”
Lowell will not be required to make a payment to Shapley and Ziegler as part of the agreement.
Empower Oversight, the whistleblower protection advocacy group representing the IRS employees, said the lawsuit against Lowelll “was never about the money.”
“This settlement unequivocally establishes the fact that our clients followed the law and that their whistleblower disclosures were legally protected,” Empower Oversight President Tristan Leavitt said in a statement.
“This case was never about the money for Gary and Joe,” Leavitt added, “but about restoring their professional reputation and ensuring that other whistleblowers can come forward the way they did — without fear.”
Charles Michael, Lowell’s attorney, told The Post that his client is “pleased” with the outcome.
“The facts and outcome speak for themselves,” Michael said in a statement. “Mr. Shapley and Mr. Ziegler sued for $20 million and got nothing.”
“The judge agreed that Mr. Lowell had every right to call out the agents’ conduct, that Mr. Lowell did not commit defamation, and that the case should be thrown out with prejudice,” he added. “Mr. Lowell is pleased that that the agents have put an end to their pursuit of a case that never should have been brought.”
Hunter pleaded guilty last year to three felony tax offenses and six misdemeanor charges in the case brought against by the Justice Department and investigated by Shapley and Ziegler.
Facing 17 years behind bars, Joe Biden issued his son a sweeping pardon ahead of his sentencing — just weeks before leaving office — absolving Hunter of his crimes.
