Former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani claimed in a bankruptcy court Wednesday that former President Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign and the Republican National Committee owe him $2 million in legal fees.
Giuliani made the bombshell claim while appearing in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York after having filed for Chapter 11 protection two months ago in December.
He reportedly filed for Chapter 11 protection after a Georgia jury ordered him to compensate a mother and daughter who he’d allegedly defamed during the 2020 presidential election.
Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Shaye Moss, speak moments after a jury orders Rudy Giuliani to pay nearly $150 million for defamation, emotional distress and punitive damages. pic.twitter.com/rQF2MMx7hz
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) December 15, 2023
During Wednesday’s meeting with creditors and the office of the US Trustee, which reportedly serves as the Department of Justice’s bankruptcy monitoring arm, he made a point to note that his $2 unpaid debt claim is against Trump’s campaign and the RNC, not Trump himself, according to Bloomberg.
“I got paid expenses but I never got a salary,” he reportedly told U.S. Trustee attorney Andrea Schwartz.
During questioning, Giuliani revealed he has roughly $10.6 million in assets but a whopping $153 million in liabilities.
“The longtime Trump adviser said he has seen his income diminish since leaving a career working in major law firms that paid him up to $6 million a year, but that he wouldn’t have had to file for bankruptcy if it weren’t for the defamation judgment he’s been ordered to pay,” Bloomberg notes.
Giuliani has for his part vowed to appeal the defamation verdict, though other defamation suits still remain unsettled.
“Others include a suit for defamation brought by Hunter Biden and a sexual harassment suit filed by former associate Noelle Dunphy,” according to Bloomberg.
Income-wise, Giuliani admitted to hosting a “marginally profitable” podcast that he said he hopes “will be more profitable” in the future:
Giuliani reportedly used the opportunity in court Wednesday to dispute all of the claims against him and to also complain about losing his legal license for helping Trump challenge the results of the 2020 presidential election.
Following the hearing, the former New York City mayor’s adviser, Ted Goodman, defended his reputation in a statement, saying that his client was forced into bankruptcy because of “the abhorrent weaponization of our justice system for partisan political gain.”
“The only reason we’re here today is because Mayor Rudy Giuliani has the courage to speak up and take on the permanent Washington political class, and he refuses to be unfairly censored or bullied into silence,” Goodman said.
Rudy Giuliani just had his first sit down with the US trustee and the creditors in his bankruptcy case. He combed through his finances for ~3 hours, declining to hold Trump responsible for $2M in unpaid legal fees—unlike his lawyers, adamant about leaving the debt unattributed. pic.twitter.com/o4ukdEbOx4
— Molly Crane-Newman (@molcranenewman) February 7, 2024
Dovetailing back to December when Giuliani filed for bankruptcy, Goodman at the time portrayed the move as a tactical one designed to help the embattled former NYC mayor prove his innocence.
“Chapter 11 will afford Mayor Giuliani the opportunity and time to pursue an appeal, while providing transparency for his finances under the supervision of the bankruptcy court, to ensure all creditors are treated equally and fairly throughout the process,” he said.
In a statement, Giuliani spokesman Ted Goodman says, “The filing should be a surprise to no one.”
“No person could have reasonably believed that Mayor Giuliani would be able to pay such a high punitive amount.” pic.twitter.com/NX8xgDoZst
— Molly Crane-Newman (@molcranenewman) December 21, 2023
All this comes months after Trump graciously hosted a $100,000-a-plate fundraiser to help Giuliani raise money to pay off some of his debts.
“Giuliani’s son, Andrew, said in a radio interview … that the event was expected to raise more than $1 million for his father and that Trump had committed to hosting a second event at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida later in the fall or early winter,” Spectrum News reported at the time.
“So that will be very helpful, [though] it won’t be enough to get through this,” he said on radio station WABC.
According to Spectrum News, Giuliani’s son had created a committee, the Giuliani Defense PAC, to raise money for his father. Moreover, Giuliani’s allies had created their own support fund called The Rudy Giuliani Freedom Fund.
In an attempt to assist @RudyGiuliani to defend himself from frivolous lawsuits, a weaponized Justice Department, and the New York Bar, we have created the Rudy Giuliani Freedom Fund. This is the official Defense Fund for this American Patriot. https://t.co/m7cN3A4MmN
— Bernard B. Kerik (@BernardKerik) June 26, 2021
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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