President Donald J. Trump filed a lawsuit in federal court on Wednesday against his former lawyer Michael Cohen.
Cohen was a key witness in the criminal case by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg against the former president.
Trump seeks more than $500 million in damages for “breaches of fiduciary duty, unjust enrichment, conversion, and breaches of contract.”
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Cohen was the key witness to testify last month before a Manhattan grand jury, which approved a 34-count indictment against Trump.
The former president has denied any wrongdoing.
As Trump’s personal lawyer, Cohen was involved in various matters, including negotiating business deals, handling media inquiries, and responding to legal challenges. Cohen was also involved in the Trump campaign for president in 2016.
In 2018, Cohen pleaded guilty to eight criminal charges, including tax evasion, campaign finance violations, and lying to Congress. Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison. He was released from prison in May 2021.
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The complaint filed Wednesday, accuses Cohen of violating his attorney-client relationship with Trump by publicly disclosing information about the former president and “spreading falsehoods about [Trump], likely to be embarrassing or detrimental, and partook in other misconduct in violation of New York Rules of Professional Conduct.”
The former president has “suffered vast reputational harm as a direct result of Defendant’s breaches,” Trump’s lawyer Alejandro Brito wrote in the complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
Trump’s attorney said that Cohen did those things with “malicious intent and to wholly self-serving ends.”
The complaint said that Cohen committed the breaches by “disparaging” Trump “through myriad public statements, including the publication of two books, a podcast series, and innumerable mainstream media appearances,” the complaint said.
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“Defendant has engaged in such wrongful conduct over a period of time and, despite being demanded in writing to cease and desist such unacceptable actions, has instead in recent months increased the frequency and hostility of the illicit acts toward Plaintiff,” Trump’s lawyer wrote.
Cohen’s attorney, Lanny J. Davis, responded to the lawsuit by saying Trump “appears once again to be using and abusing the judicial system as a form of harassment and intimidation.”
“It appears he is terrified by his looming legal perils and is attempting to send a message to other potential witnesses who are cooperating with prosecutors against him,” Davis said in a statement. “Mr. Cohen will not be deterred and is confident that the suit will fail based on the facts and the law.”
The complaint said that Trump wants “compensatory, incidental, and punitive damages” in an amount that would be determined at a trial and would “substantially exceed” $500 million.
He also demands any profits or compensation Cohen receives from his books, podcast, or other products.
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