U.S. Federal Reserve Board President Lisa Cook attends the National Association for Business Economics (NABE) Economic Policy Conference on Tuesday, February 24, 2026 in Washington, DC.
Graham Sloan | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Federal Reserve President Lisa Cook incurred more than $1.3 million in legal and security costs after President Donald Trump tried to remove her from the Fed’s board in August, a new ethics filing revealed Thursday.
The filing revealed that these expenses were paid by other individuals and organizations.
The Supreme Court is expected to rule in the coming weeks on whether Trump has the authority to fire Cook for the reasons he cited.
President Trump sought to remove Mr. Cook from the Fed board, based on allegations from Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte, alleging that Mr. Cook committed mortgage fraud.
Cook denies that she did any wrongdoing and filed suit to block her termination. She remained on the board pending the outcome of the lawsuit.
“Supreme Court litigation is not cheap,” a person familiar with Cook’s situation said on condition of anonymity to discuss Cook’s legal costs.
Cook’s speech was made public in the wake of the administration’s accusations against her.
“Due to persistent public attacks from the president and Mr. Pulte, certain steps had to be taken to protect her,” the source said.
The Fed and Mr. Cook’s attorney each declined to comment.
Cook’s 2025 annual financial filing with the Office of Government Ethics lists nearly $1.2 million in “payments for legal services” from two nonprofit organizations: Democracy Defense Fund and Contina Impact.
Contina Impact also provided approximately $144,000 in funding for security services. Cooke’s form also mentions other small, pro bono contributions towards her legal and security costs.
Mr. Cook’s lawyer, Norm Eisen, is a co-founder of the Democracy Defense Fund.
“The Democracy Defense Fund is proud to be part of the defense team in this case as part of the fight to uphold the rule of law,” Eisen said.
Contina Impact’s website states that it offers fiscal sponsorship, a service that allows other organizations without legal nonprofit status to receive tax-deductible donations. Contina Impact did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment through the accountant listed on its website.
Pulte will be sworn in as acting director of national intelligence on Friday.
Cook is taking a leave of absence from Michigan State University while working at the Federal Reserve.
According to her disclosure, she receives rental income from a house in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and another house in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which she describes as investment property.
Federal ethics regulations allow outside payments for expenses incurred in the course of work, such as Cook’s.
