California led or was directly involved in about 50 lawsuits challenging the Trump administration‘s policies in 2025.
Those lawsuits include challenges to policies that directly involved California — including the federalization of the state’s National Guard and deployment of troops to Los Angeles amid ramped-up immigration enforcement efforts over the summer — and other directives that would have sweeping implications across the country.
Those include a multi-state effort challenging the U.S. Department of Education’s withholding of federal funds from states and local agencies that do not dismantle efforts to promote diversity, equity and inclusion. California Attorney General Rob Bonta, in announcing the lawsuit filed in April, said some $7.9 billion in federal financial assistance is at risk in California alone.
Related: America’s legal system is confusing. Here are some of the common terms used in the Trump lawsuits
In July, several states challenged the termination of FEMA’s grant program that facilitated disaster preparedness projects. A federal judge ruled on Dec. 11 in favor of the states, saying the administration could not unilaterally cancel the grant programs.
More recently, just before Christmas Eve, California was part of another multi-state lawsuit challenging the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ directive that could bar healthcare providers and institutions from Medicare, Medicaid and other federal programs because they provide gender affirming care. The federal government’s recent declaration said certain treatments, including puberty blockers and hormone therapy, are unsafe and ineffective for children. The states argued, in their lawsuit, that the assertion is inaccurate.
California sued the first Trump administration 123 times, with Xavier Becerra as California’s attorney general. The state won about two-thirds of those cases, which were mostly involving environmental rules and immigration.
Just after Trump’s second inauguration in 2025, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation allocating an additional $25 million to the California Department of Justice expressly for challenges to the Republican administration.
Keep up to date with California’s lawsuits with our tracker here, where you can filter cases based on topic, find articles that go more in-depth on the issues at hand, and read more about why these cases matter to California.
Note, these are only cases where California is directly involved. These do not include instances when the state has only played a supporting role to other lawsuits, such as with amicus briefs or regulatory letters.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
