Michael Cohen, the former personal lawyer and fixer for Donald Trump, has reached a settlement in his lawsuit against the Trump Organization. The lawsuit accused the organization of failing to cover millions of dollars in legal bills incurred during Cohen’s work for the former U.S. president.
Michael Cohen Settles Lawsuit Against Trump
Lawyers from both sides revealed the resolution during a hearing at a New York state court in Manhattan on Friday, just three days ahead of the scheduled trial.
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The specific terms of the settlement were not disclosed to the public. However, both Michael Cohen Settles Lawsuit Against Trump and a lawyer representing the Trump Organization issued statements indicating that the matter had been resolved to the satisfaction of all parties involved.
Once a staunch supporter of Trump, Michael Cohen has now become a vocal critic, and his 2020 memoir, “Disloyal,” achieved bestseller status according to the New York Times.
Michael Cohen Settles Lawsuit Against Trump claimed that the Trump Organization failed to honor its agreement to pay his legal bills when he started cooperating with various investigations into his work for the former president. These investigations included inquiries into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election and Trump’s alleged efforts to silence women who claimed to have had affairs with him.
Initially, Cohen filed the lawsuit in March 2019 to seek reimbursement for $1.9 million in fees, as well as an additional $1.9 million he was ordered to forfeit in a criminal case. Over time, the fees continued to accumulate, and while the Trump Organization did make some payments, the matter remained unresolved until the recent settlement.
Despite the settlement, Michael Cohen Settles Lawsuit Against Trump is expected to play a significant role as a prosecution witness against Trump in a criminal trial scheduled for next March. The case revolves around payments made by Cohen, which were later reimbursed by Trump, to adult film star Stormy Daniels in an attempt to keep her silent about an alleged affair with Trump before the 2016 presidential election—a claim that Trump denies.
Additionally, Cohen is also pursuing the dismissal of a $500 million lawsuit filed against him by Trump in a federal court in Florida. In this case, Trump accuses Cohen of violating ethics rules governing lawyers’ conduct by disclosing “confidences” and spreading falsehoods in books and media, damaging Trump’s reputation by labeling him as “racist.”
As for Trump, he faces a multitude of other legal challenges. These include a criminal trial scheduled for May in Florida, where he is charged with illegally taking classified documents from the White House and providing false information to officials who sought to recover them. Furthermore, there are potential charges related to his efforts to remain in power after losing the 2020 election to Democrat Joe Biden.
Cohen, who previously pleaded guilty in 2018 to campaign finance violations and tax evasion, served a three-year sentence, spending some time in prison and some in home confinement due to the COVID-19 pandemic.