Justin Elliott
Justin Elliott is a ProPublica reporter covering business and politics. To send Justin a tip or documents, reach him through one of the methods below.
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Justin Elliott has been a reporter with ProPublica, where he covers business and politics, since 2012.
In 2023, he and colleagues revealed how a set of politically connected billionaires provided lavish gifts and travel to Supreme Court justices over many years. Those stories won the Pulitzer Prize gold medal for public service.
He was previously on the team of reporters documenting how the rich avoid taxes for “The Secret IRS Files” series. He co-wrote a story revealing how tech mogul Peter Thiel turned a Roth IRA into a multibillion-dollar tax haven.
His work has spurred congressional investigations and changes to federal law. His coverage of TurboTax-maker Intuit’s misleading marketing tactics led to a settlement delivering $141 million back to consumers.
His work has won numerous awards. In addition to the Pulitzer Prize, he has won a George Polk Award, the Selden Ring Award, and a Gerald Loeb Award for business journalism. His stories have been published and aired in outlets including The New York Times and NPR. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Brown University in history and classics.
You can send him feedback, story tips and documents via email at [email protected], or by Signal or WhatsApp at 774-826-6240.
Thinking about getting in touch? For more on how Justin handles tips and story ideas, read his piece on the important role of reader tips in the Supreme Court series.
Multiple Trump Witnesses Have Received Significant Financial Benefits From His Businesses, Campaign
Witnesses in the various criminal cases against the former president have gotten pay raises, new jobs and more. If any benefits were intended to influence testimony, that could be a crime.
by Robert Faturechi, Justin Elliott and Alex Mierjeski,
Sports Team Owners Face New Scrutiny From IRS Over Tax Avoidance
A new campaign by the tax agency comes after ProPublica revealed how billionaires generate what can be hundreds of millions in tax savings by purchasing professional sports teams.
by Robert Faturechi, Ellis Simani and Justin Elliott,
Trump’s Lawyers Told the Court That No One Would Give Him a Bond. Then He Got a Lifeline, but They Didn’t Tell the Judges.
An appeals court reduced Trump’s bond by more than 60% after his attorneys claimed it was a “practical impossibility” to pay the full amount. Their failure to disclose a proposal from a billionaire financier may have violated ethics rules.
by Robert Faturechi, Justin Elliott and Alex Mierjeski,
Customer Service Company That Worked With Disney, Comcast Will Pay $2M to Workers to Settle Lawsuit Over Pay Practices
The D.C. attorney general settled with Arise Virtual Solutions for misclassifying workers as “independent contractors.” The action followed a ProPublica story that outlined the violations.
by Justin Elliott and Ken Armstrong,
FTC Orders Maker of TurboTax to Cease “Deceptive” Advertising
The federal agency, after an investigation prompted by ProPublica’s reporting, blasted Intuit for misleading customers about its “free” tax-filing program and directed the company to take specific steps to fix its ads.
by Justin Elliott and Paul Kiel,
A “Delicate Matter”: Clarence Thomas’ Private Complaints About Money Sparked Fears He Would Resign
Interviews and newly unearthed documents reveal that Thomas, facing financial strain, privately pushed for a higher salary and to allow Supreme Court justices to take speaking fees.
by Justin Elliott, Joshua Kaplan, Alex Mierjeski and Brett Murphy,
The Supreme Court Has Adopted a Conduct Code, but Who Will Enforce It?
Experts say it is unclear if the new rules, which come after reporting by ProPublica and others revealed that justices had repeatedly failed to disclose gifts and travel from wealthy donors, would address the issues raised by the recent revelations.
by Joshua Kaplan, Justin Elliott, Brett Murphy and Alex Mierjeski,
It’s Not Personal: Why Clarence Thomas’ Trip to the Koch Summit Undermines His Ethics Defense
Even by Thomas’ own permissive interpretation, the justice’s recently revealed travel to Palm Springs and the Bohemian Grove appear to violate the disclosure law, experts explained.
by Justin Elliott, Joshua Kaplan and Alex Mierjeski,
Clarence Thomas Secretly Participated in Koch Network Donor Events
Thomas has attended at least two Koch donor summits, putting him in the extraordinary position of having helped a political network that has brought multiple cases before the Supreme Court.
by Joshua Kaplan, Justin Elliott and Alex Mierjeski,
Clarence Thomas Acknowledges Undisclosed Real Estate Deal With Harlan Crow and Discloses Private Jet Flights
The new filing comes after ProPublica’s reporting on the Supreme Court justice’s beneficial relationship with the billionaire GOP megadonor. Thomas also reported three private jet trips provided by Crow.
by Joshua Kaplan, Justin Elliott and Alex Mierjeski,