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NOW: The judge handling Trump's lawsuit challenging a NY law that allows House Dems to request his state tax returns will be assigned to another judge - Judge Trevor McFadden rejected Trump's effort to designate it as related to the case re: subpoena for his federal tax returns
McFadden didn't touch Trump's emergency request for an injunction preemptively blocking House Dems from requesting his state tax returns from NY under the NY state law at issue. The case will get reassigned, and Trump can pursue it then
McFadden just announced his decision from the bench after hearing arguments. It was clear from the start that Trump's lawyer had a steep hill to climb, McFadden repeatedly expressed skepticism that the facts were similar enough
To back up for a moment: Normally, when a new lawsuit is filed, it gets randomly assigned to a judge. If the facts are similar enough to another case, however, it can be designated as "related" and assigned to the same judge handling that earlier case
But as McFadden noted, the bar for proving cases are related for purposes of judge assignment is high, and courts have to be mindful about the perception — real or not — that parties are "judge shopping"
The earlier case, which was assigned to McFadden, involves House Dems suing the Treasury Dept. to enforce a subpoena for Trump's federal tax returns. In this case, Trump is challenging a NY state law that allows House Dems to request his state tax returns
Among the differences McFadden noted:
- Focus on federal statute + federal tax returns v. state statute and state returns
- Subpoena already issued v. no request made yet by House Dems
- Congressional privileges different when members go to court v. when they are taken to court
- Focus on federal statute + federal tax returns v. state statute and state returns
- Subpoena already issued v. no request made yet by House Dems
- Congressional privileges different when members go to court v. when they are taken to court
Trump's lawsuit seeking to block House Dems from getting his state tax returns from NY – and challenging the NY law that made it possible – has been assigned to the DC federal district court's newest judge, Judge Carl Nichols (see thread above for why) 
Now that Trump's lawsuit seeking to block House Dems from getting his state tax returns from NY has a new judge (see thread), there's now a hearing set for tomorrow afternoon on Trump's emergency request to stop Dems from getting the docs while the case is pending
