Abstaining From Declaratory Judgment Claims: 'Wolff v. Trump'

June 30, 2026  |  New York Law Journal

Southern District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil’s decision in Wolff v. Trump demonstrates the broad discretion federal courts have to decline to exercise jurisdiction over actions brought pursuant to the Declaratory Judgment Act. In their latest New York Law Journal article, Morvillo Abramowitz Grand Iason & Anello P.C. partners Ed Spiro and Chris Harwood analyze the decision, explaining how Judge Vyskocil applied the Supreme Court’s Wilton abstention doctrine to decline to exercise jurisdiction over what she found to be an action motivated by gamesmanship. Wolff serves as a reminder that declaratory judgment actions cannot be used to short-circuit the ordinary litigation process or avoid defending claims in the plaintiff’s chosen forum.

Abstaining From Declaratory Judgment Claims: 'Wolff v. Trump'