Maurene Comey wins ruling against DOJ over 2025 termination

Maurene Comey has been ordered to receive retroactive reinstatement as an assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, according to a ruling issued Monday by Judge Jesse Furman.

The federal court determined that the Department of Justice's decision to terminate Comey on July 16, 2025, was unlawful. As part of the order, the DOJ must pay back wages for the period between her firing and December 20, 2025, the date the court inferred she accepted another position.

The ruling addresses the legal basis for the termination, which the DOJ argued was valid under the executive branch's power to dismiss prosecutors without cause. Judge Furman rejected that interpretation, citing the Civil Service Reform Act. The statute requires that employees receive advance written notice, a reasonable time to respond, representation, and a written decision stating specific reasons for removal.

The judge noted that the DOJ conceded Comey was not afforded these procedural protections. Furman also addressed the argument that Attorney General Todd Blanche, acting in May 2025, ratified the removal by his predecessor, Pam Bondi. The court found this post-hoc ratification insufficient to validate the original termination.

In his written decision, Furman described the DOJ's statutory argument as bordering on frivolous. The judge pointed to Comey's consistent high performance reviews, which described her work product and courtroom advocacy as among the finest in the country. The DOJ admitted in court that the termination was not for cause and was not based on her performance.

Maurene Comey, the daughter of former FBI Director James Comey, had been involved in high-profile prosecutions including those against Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell, and Sean Combs before her dismissal. Her lawsuit alleged that the termination stemmed from President Donald Trump's longstanding animus toward her father, whom Trump fired as FBI director in 2017.

James Comey is currently facing a federal indictment accusing him of threatening the president's life via a social media post. His attorneys are seeking to have that case dismissed, following the dismissal of a previous indictment filed by the DOJ under the current administration.

Comey's lawyers described the outcome as a victory for civil servants and the rule of law. They stated that accepting the government's argument for unlimited executive power would unsettle the constitutional equilibrium. The lawyers emphasized that the decision reaffirms that the President is not above the law.

The Department of Justice said it disagrees with the decision and intends to appeal in due course. The White House pointed to a post by the DOJ's Rapid Response account on X, which claimed the ruling obstructs the president's constitutional authority to fire individuals who wield executive power.

The case will proceed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan. Judge Furman reserved judgment on Comey's First Amendment claim, giving her until November 9 to file arguments on why that claim should not be dismissed as moot following the favorable ruling on other grounds.