type: timeline_event
U.S. District Judge Theodore Chuang ruled that Elon Musk and State Department officials must sit for depositions over their role in dismantling the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), rejecting arguments that Musk should be shielded under the "apex doctrine" that can protect high-ranking government officials from depositions. The eight-page order found that "extraordinary circumstances justify" making Musk, former acting USAID director Peter Marocco, and State Department official Jeremy Lewin available for depositions despite Trump administration objections.
Judge Chuang wrote it was "at best unclear" whether Musk, Marocco, and Lewin qualified as high-ranking officials for apex doctrine protection, emphasizing that USAID is not a Cabinet-level agency, several roles were acting or informal, and that defendants "acknowledge that Musk has left government service," reducing concerns about burdening current official duties. The judge noted there was "no alternative" to the depositions, citing plaintiffs' inability to obtain information through documents or lower-ranking officials whose deposition requests went unanswered. Chuang pointed to Musk's many posts on X bragging about how DOGE shut down USAID, ruling that Musk and the officials "likely have personal, first-hand knowledge of the facts relevant and essential to the resolution of this case."
The order represented a win for anonymous USAID employees suing over what they called an unlawful effort by DOGE officials to gut the world's largest humanitarian aid organization. The case was the first asserting Musk's actions violated the Constitution's Appointments Clause. The lawsuit alleged DOGE illegally suspended federal contracts and salaries, issued agency-wide directives without legal authority, and dismantled USAID entirely. USAID's former workforce of 10,000 managed $43 billion in appropriations and assisted 130 countries; according to studies, USAID programs helped prevent an estimated 91 million deaths over two decades, including 30 million children. The lawsuit also named Secretary of State Marco Rubio, State Department official Kenneth Jackson, and DOGE administrator Amy Gleason as defendants. A date has not yet been set for depositions.