Political Junkie

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Michael Avenatti Ordered to Pay $4.85 Million to Attorney at Former Firm

Michael Avenatti, the lawyer who shot to fame for representing porn star Stormy Daniels in her lawsuit against President Donald Trump, has been ordered to pay a former colleague nearly $5 million dollars by a Southern California court.  

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Dennis Landin ordered Avenatti to pay Jason Frank, an attorney at his former law firm, $4.85 million because Avenatti personally guaranteed a settlement in a lawsuit over back pay. Frank alleged in his lawsuit that Avenatti's former firm misstated profits, and was owed millions. 

Avenatti was not present at the hearing, and did not file any opposing arguments in the case.

The judge issued the ruling after turning down a request from Avenatti's team to move the case to federal court, which the opposing side called a delay tactic. 

Avenatti told the Associated Press on Monday that Frank owes him and the firm $12 million "for his fraud" but did not provide details what that fraud entailed. 

It's the latest legal setback for Avenatti after the Justice Department accused him of making misrepresentations in the bankruptcy case in July, saying his former law firm owed more than $440,000 in unpaid federal taxes. 

Last week, a federal judge dismissed Daniels' defamation lawsuit she brought against Trump after finding that the president made a "hyperbolic statement" about a political adversary when he tweeted about her. 


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