Judge orders DOJ to pay Maurene Comey $40,000 and restore her post

U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman ordered the Justice Department to pay former Assistant U.S. Attorney Maurene Comey $40,000 in back pay. The payment covers the period from her termination in July 2025 through December 20, 2025, when she started a new position. The ruling was issued on Monday.

Furman determined that Comey was unlawfully terminated. He found that the Justice Department violated the Constitution's separation of powers. The court also ruled that her Fifth Amendment due process rights and statutory protections were breached. The judge wrote that the administration's claim of at-will firing power would unsettle the constitutional system's equilibrium.

Comey worked in the Southern District of New York for nearly a decade. She handled high-profile cases involving Sean Combs, former Senator Bob Menendez, Jeffrey Epstein, and Ghislaine Maxwell. She filed her lawsuit in September 2025. Her attorneys alleged the Trump administration provided no legitimate explanation for her dismissal. They argued the firing stemmed from President Donald Trump's long-standing conflict with her father, former FBI Director James Comey.

Comey stated that her supervisor told her the decision came from Washington. A later court filing from the Justice Department identified then-Attorney General Pam Bondi as the official who directed the removal. Furman found that Bondi failed to follow the law during the process. The judge noted that while Congress granted the Attorney General removal power, it also imposed limits on that authority. Furman wrote that those limits were violated in Comey's case.

The Justice Department argued that Bondi had the authority to fire Comey at will without cause. The department also contended that Congress could not limit that executive authority. Furman rejected these arguments. He described the department's position as a sweeping theory of executive authority that contradicts two centuries of Supreme Court precedent. The ruling noted the administration has used this theory to remove other career officials involved in investigations of Trump or the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack.

A Justice Department spokesperson said the agency disagrees with the decision and will appeal in due course. Comey's attorneys, Ellen Blain, Nicole Gueron, Deepa Vanamali, and Margaret Donovan, issued a joint statement. They said the decision reaffirms that the President is not above the law. They added that the victory belongs to all civil servants and those fighting for the rule of law.

The administration continues a federal criminal case against James Comey. The case centers on a photo of seashells that prosecutors say was a threat against Trump. A judge has delayed that case until at least early 2027. James Comey's legal team argues the case is a retribution campaign. They maintain that dictionaries, context, precedent, and common sense show the photo was not a true threat.