Rudy Giuliani , former President Donald Trump’s lawyer, on Monday defended his work in a failed Election Fraud lawsuit. A Washington, D.C. disciplinary panel was able to hear charges that Giuliani had violated the rules of attorney ethics.
A judge rejected the November 2020 lawsuit that sought to invalidate Pennsylvanian votes. The federal appeals court denied permission to the campaign to file a revised complaint.
Hamilton “Phil” Fox of District of Columbia Office of Disciplinary Counsel stated to the panel that the former mayor of New York City, who was once the top U.S. attorney in Manhattan, had “weaponized” his law license in order to bring a frivolous case in an effort to undermine the Constitution.
Monday saw the beginning of weeklong arguments in front of a hearing committee from the D.C. Board on Professional Responsibility. This committee could recommend that Giuliani’s D.C. legal license be suspended or barred. Any discipline will be decided by a D.C. court.
John Leventhal, Giuliani’s lawyer, stated that his client should not be charged because the Pennsylvania judge did not accept or consider the only version Giuliani signed.
Leventhal also criticized the reasons the judge gave for dismissing the suit and pointed out that Giuliani was not sanctioned by the court because of his arguments.
Giuliani was Monday’s first witness. He spoke about how he started leading the legal efforts of the Trump campaign to contest the 2020 election results, and his involvement in the Pennsylvania lawsuit.
Fox, disciplinary counsel, asked Giuliani if he had adequately supported certain claims in the lawsuit. This is what lawyers are required to do when alleging fraudulent conduct. Giuliani repeated his assertions that the allegations were as precise as he could make them, and added that he was limited in time to sue before the election results had been certified.
Giuliani’s testimony will conclude on Tuesday.
Giuliani’s New York law licence was suspended in June 2021, after an appeals court found that Giuliani made “demonstrably misleading and false” statements about widespread voter fraud that undermined the election.
After the New York ruling, his D.C. law licence was temporarily suspended.
