Judge orders ethics inquiry into US government lawyers over Trump golf course case, amid claims court was misled

A United States federal judge has opened a formal inquiry into whether US government lawyers misled the court over plans to transform a historic public golf course in Washington, DC. Friday's move escalates the legal fight over the East Potomac Golf Links and President Donald Trump's efforts to reshape the US capital.

Judge Ana Reyes of the US District Court for the District of Columbia announced she would appoint a special master to examine whether government officials withheld information or made misleading assertions concerning the course. The inquiry will determine whether their conduct breached professional or ethical obligations.

Reyes questioned Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward Jr for more than two hours during Friday's hearing, repeatedly comparing his testimony with the president's online announcements. She also asked him whether a National Park Service official had been instructed to omit details from a court declaration.

Trump's posts, which began earlier this month on his Truth Social account, indicated the course would close for 15 months, starting on November 15, to accommodate a major redevelopment. He had also posted about commissioning golf course architect Tom Fazio to build a world-class championship course on the park site, which currently includes biking and walking paths.

Yet officials from various government agencies, including the Interior Department, the Justice Department and the National Park Service, had previously been unable to confirm the existence or scope of any plans when questioned by the judge. Until Wednesday, Justice Department lawyers had declined to acknowledge any plans regarding the golf course.

On Wednesday, the Justice Department informed the court that the National Park Service would submit a design from Tom Fazio to the National Capital Planning Commission on Friday.

Earlier this year, Reyes had ordered the government to provide advance notice of substantive construction work at the site. Despite that order, the dispute intensified earlier this month after more than 400 trees were removed from the golf course, and Reyes subsequently extended her injunction against the government making any further "irreversible" changes to the site.

The DC Preservation League, which filed the lawsuit in February, has argued the redevelopment could violate environmental protections and damage a historically significant public space.

The case is one of two legal battles over Trump's plans for Washington, DC unfolding on Friday. Another US judge was due to hear a separate challenge to the White House's proposed construction of a 75-metre (250-foot) memorial arch near Arlington National Cemetery.

David Super, a professor at the Georgetown University Law Center, told the Associated Press that the cases reflect a shift in how the administration approaches legal constraints on executive power. "There was always the assumption that you would try to do things that were legal," Super said.