Donald J. Trump is already facing dozens of criminal charges for allegedly falsifying business records and misusing campaign funds in an alleged attempt to influence the 2016 presidential election. Yet Trump is back in court suing his former attorney, Michael Cohen, for $500 million.
The lawsuit accuses Cohen of talking publicly about things that should have remained confidential between him and his former client. The lawsuit also accuses Cohen of telling lies about Mr. Trump in the media and in Cohen’s two books, Disloyal: A Memoir: The True Story of the Former Personal Attorney to President Donald J. Trump, and Revenge: How Donald Trump Weaponized the U.S. Department of Justice Against His Critics.
The first book was published prior to the 2020 presidential election, whereas the second was released in 2022. Among other things, the books accuse Trump of being a racist and of lying about just about everything.
Trump has denied all the allegations Cohen leveled against him in his two books. According to the lawsuit, Cohen has been asked in writing to stop spreading the alleged lies about Trump, but the cease-and-desist letters have had no effect on Cohen’s behavior or language. According to the lawsuit, the more public attention Cohen gets for his lies about Trump, the more emboldened he becomes to continue telling lies.
One of the specific statements Cohen made that Trump and his team are claiming to be false is Cohen stating a business expenditure he undertook for Trump. According to the lawsuit, Cohen claimed to be owed $74,000 more than the actual amount of the expenditure.
Many of Trump’s alleged lies are allegedly well documented, but Cohen also has a history of telling lies. In late 2018 he pleaded guilty to lying to Congress about when plans to build a Trump Tower in Moscow had actually come to an end. He was disbarred a few months later.
The campaign finance violations to which Cohen pleaded guilty relate to alleged hush-money payments Cohen made to two different women to allegedly prevent them from talking about their alleged affairs with Trump. Those payments are at the heart of some of the charges Trump himself is currently facing.
Trump denies having had an affair with either of the women who were allegedly paid to keep quiet.
An attorney representing Cohen in the case has said that Cohen refuses to be silenced by the lawsuit, and that he is confident that the facts and the law are in his favor.
At Lubin Austermuehle, we help clients navigate the complex laws and emotionally charged pathways to a court victory or settlement in slander and libel cases, as well as a vast range of other disputes from class action suits to breach of contract. We serve clients throughout Chicagoland from Waukegan, to Skokie and beyond. You can contact us online here or call us on our locally at 630-333-0333. Take advantage of our FREE consultation, where we can discuss your specific needs and wishes and our ability to meet them.