In a filing Wednesday afternoon, attorneys for President Donald Trump told the federal judge overseeing the investigation of his personal attorney, Michael Cohen, that Trump would, as necessary, personally review documents to ensure that privileged information is not revealed accidentally to the FBI or prosecutors.
“…Our client will make himself available, as needed, to aid in our privilege review on his behalf,” wrote attorneys Joanna Hendon, Christopher Dysard and Reed Keefe in their filing.
The filing is part of the ongoing effort by Cohen and Trump to get the first crack at reviewing records seized earlier this month from Cohen’s home, hotel and office. So far, US District Judge Kimba Wood has ruled against Cohen and Trump, though she has said she would be willing to consider their backup request to have an independent third-party review record before prosecutors and agents do.
Trump’s attorneys made their submission late Wednesday in advance of a Thursday status meeting in US District Court in Manhattan.
The issue of document review arose after the FBI raids and the subsequent public confirmation that Cohen has been under federal investigation for months. The probe is focused both on Cohen’s private business dealings as well as his work for and on behalf of Trump.
Cohen, the president’s self-described “fixer,” has been Trump’s key aide and attorney for more than a decade. Speculation in the last two weeks has suggested that the Cohen case could well pose the biggest legal threat to Trump because he – more than almost anyone else – could know about potentially questionable deals or tactics that may have been employed by Trump in the years before he ran for the White House.
This is a developing story, please refresh for updates.
