Hunter Biden Lawyer Wins Defamation Case Against IRS Agents (2)

Oct. 17, 2025, 2:08 PM UTC

A federal judge threw out a defamation lawsuit filed by two IRS agents against Hunter Biden’s attorney, finding that the lawyer’s statements were constitutionally protected opinions.

Agents Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler, who disclosed Biden’s tax information, claimed attorney Abbe Lowell made defamatory statements in a 2023 letter sent to a congressional committee that accused them of violating grand jury secrecy rules. Judge Richard J. Leon dismissed the defamation case date docketed Thursday, adding that Shapley and Ziegler also didn’t plausibly allege that Lowell acted with actual malice.

The statements were expressions of legal opinion based on application of criminal ...

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