Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis falsely stated Sunday that she paid all special prosecutors working on the case against former President Donald Trump the same hourly rate as her alleged romantic partner, Nathan Wade, according to documents obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
Willis made the statement during her first public remarks since Trump co-defendant Michael Roman filed a motion last week claiming Willis not was not only romantically involved with Wade, but also that she benefited from a “lucrative” contract her office awarded to Wade.
As recently as May 2023, her office paid the attorney considered Georgia’s top racketeering expert, John Floyd, only $200 per hour, while Wade — who reportedly has little to no experience prosecuting RICO cases — was earning $250 an hour, according to billing statements obtained by the DCNF.
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“I’m a little confused. I appointed three special counsels, as is my right to do, paid them all the same hourly rate. They only attack one,” Willis during her Sunday remarks at Big Bethel AME Church, indirectly referencing Wade.
In total, Wade’s firm has received nearly $654,000 from the Fulton County District Attorney’s office since the start of 2022, according to county records. Over the same period, Floyd’s firm received just over $90,000, per county data.
Wade filed for divorce from his wife on Nov. 2, 2021, the day after his contract with Willis started. His wife alleged in court filings previously obtained by the DCNF that Wade did not disclose to her over $700,000 in earnings from the county but continued to draw from her bank account despite “the clear inequity in financial circumstances.”
The motion initially filed by Roman stated that “sources close to both the special prosecutor and the district attorney” confirmed their ongoing relationship,” though it did not cite hard evidence the pair is romantically involved.
Billing statements reviewed by the DCNF likewise show Wade’s monthly earnings are substantially higher than both Floyd’s and the other special counsel, Anna Cross.
Over a three month period between November 2022 and January 2023, Wade earned $68,500 while Floyd only earned $30,200, according to statements obtained by the DCNF.
Based on available statements, Wade billed the least in January 2023, at $20,000, with other months exceeding that amount. In March 2023, he billed $36,000, statements show.
Meanwhile, Floyd’s earnings broke $5,000 in only two months: November 2022, at $10,940, and December 2022, at $16,000, per an incomplete set of statements obtained by the DCNF. Floyd billed the least in July 2022, at $1,560 for the month, according to available statements.
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Cross earned $37,729 between July 2022 and September 2022, according to billing statements obtained by the DCNF. Her firm, The Cross Firm LLC, has been paid close to $48,000 since 2022, according to county data. Cross joined the firm in October 2022, according to her LinkedIn.
The disparity in earning may stem from a structural difference in Wade’s contracts.
Wade’s contract from Nov. 15, 2022 to May 15. 2023 provides him nearly four times the earning potential as Floyd’s initial contract, along with coverage for work-related travel and lodging expenses, which Wade’s contract includes and Floyd’s does not, documents obtained by the DCNF show.
Floyd’s services are capped at 40 hours per month, per the initial contract spanning April 2021 through April 2022, specifying that “only under rare and unlikely events, will a monthly invoice exceed six thousand dollars.” While this contract sets Floyd’s hourly rate at $150, billing statements obtained by the DCNF show that between May 2022 and May 2023 he billed Fulton County at a rate of $200 an hour.
A contract covering May 2022 to Dec. 2023 could not be located, so it is possible the monthly hour and dollar cap also increased.
Wade’s contract from Nov. 15, 2022 to May 15. 2023, which is included in Roman’s motion, caps his hours at a total of 600 for the six-month period, allowing him to earn a maximum of $150,000 for its duration. This allows Wade to bill a maximum of 100 hours and $25,000 per month.
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Wade’s most recent contract from June 12, 2023 through Dec. 31, 2023, included on page 116 of the motion, enables him to work up to 120 hours per month, capping his earnings for the contract’s duration at $210,000.
Wade’s initial contract from Nov. 1, 2021 to Oct. 31, 2022 is not included in the motion.
Roman’s attorney Ashleigh Merchant noted in the motion that Wade has never prosecuted a felony RICO case and that she was “unable to find any history of, Wade ever having prosecuted a single felony trial.” Before his appointment as special prosecutor, Wade worked in private practice dealing with contract disputes and family law, as well as a municipal judge dealing with traffic tickets, according to The Washington Post.
Floyd, who wrote a book on federal and state RICO statutes, previously helped Willis use Georgia’s RICO act to prosecute nearly three Atlanta dozen public educators for a cheating scandal that resulted in eleven teachers being convicted by a jury in April 2015, according to the Associated Press. Cross has 20 years of experience as a prosecutor, according to her firm’s website, and has represented Georgia in multiple high-profile homicide cases, along with arguing over 60 times at the Georgia Supreme Court.
The District Attorney’s office, Wade and Floyd did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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