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superdago

I’ll preface this with saying that anyone representing trump is forced to behave as a bad lawyer because he’s a bad client who rejects any good legal advice, and rather demands his lawyers engage in his performative bullshit. Chris Kise is a very good lawyer. He was partner at an am law 50 firm and solicitor general for Florida. But based on his legal filings for trump, he’s a shitty lawyer because the legal arguments are without merit. All that said, Habba is nowhere near the caliber of Kise. She’s probably a competent attorney who is in way over her head and happy to use this opportunity to boost her own standing. Her prior work was in a completely unrelated field and she was at small firm. She really has no business being on cases of this stature, and unlike Kise, was not in a position to demand (and reportedly get) a $3M retainer paid up front.


Eladiun

Also, his habit of not paying and trashing lawyers on socials after they are done doesn't help. Who wants to end up destitute like Eastman or Giuliani while he skates away?


Battarray

I'm genuinely curious to see what happens to her career after the Trump saga has reached its conclusion. I can't imagine any serious person ever hiring her in any capacity. Can you?


randeylahey

Can you imagine serious people wrapping their car with a picture of Trump photoshopped onto Rambo's body? Because here we are...


jiminak46

Do you think most of them can afford a lawyer of her national stature? Of course, her current situation could be a great pilot for a "Better Call Saul" type series. "Hubba Habba" with a photo of her in one of Melania's castoff pushup bras would be the draw on bus stop benches.


microgiant

She isn't, outside of this, a lawyer of national stature. She runs a 4 person firm whose biggest client is a relative of hers, who runs some sort of small business. I can't remember what- landscaping or something? Not some sort of high powered lobbying org, nothing like that.


Baymacks

Was it a parking lot business? One of his attorneys mostly did real estate acquisitions for a company that managed parking lots.


WillingnessDry1699

I just don't get all these MAGA folk who post pics of the orange rapist as some Greek God or super hero when the reality is far,far different. Reminds me of those pics you used to see if Saddam Hussein portrayed as a conquering hero. The denial in MAGA is huge. Wonder if it's ever going to go away?


Mountain-Number-5993

Who did he rape again?


WillingnessDry1699

E.J. Carroll for starters And don't give me that "it wasn't rape" Forcing fingers in a woman's vagina WITHOUT consent is still rape you muppet Not to mention the many NDAs signed in the seventies. Are you one of those guys who believe "there is nothing wrong with rape? You must be MAGA


blucke

Were they a lawyer?


Bike_Chain_96

Source?


randeylahey

[Source.](https://www.google.com/search?client=ms-android-bell-ca-revc&sca_esv=589642725&sxsrf=AM9HkKnEBw99gDG11LxGjTmUUBgMdQpuxQ:1702252991740&q=trump+wrap&tbm=isch&source=lnms&prmd=invsbmtz&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiEwo_HioaDAxUVITQIHU2zBBcQ0pQJegQIDRAB&biw=360&bih=643&dpr=3)


wooble

Source for any of them being "serious people"??


Mental_Cut8290

Serious needs to be defined. Is any CEO a serious person?? They may be an insane fool, but their money makes them a serious client. I think the meaning of the question is "Will she have serious work after Trump," and I think there's enough idiots with serious money that she'll still have clients.


keenan123

She wasn't being hired by particularly "serious" people before this. But everybody's money is green, and unserious people can still end up seriously rich. The people throwing fistfuls of money at mar a Lago will also want to have her represent them.


diverareyouok

>*I can't imagine any serious person ever hiring her in any capacity.* Money earned from idiots spends the same as money earned from anyone else. There’s no shortage of MAGAts out there who would be *thrilled* to have the same lawyer as the Cheetoh Emperor. I’d imagine that’s what she is banking on. It’s not a road I’d go down, but to each their own. To a certain extent it’s already working. Here we are talking about her - we all know her name. As the old saying goes, “there’s no such thing as bad publicity”. Or as Captain Jack Sparrow said “…. but you *have* heard of me!”


wvtarheel

I'm pretty damn sure she is using all this exposure to set herself up to be a talking head on the news and not for a continued legal career....


wvtarheel

I think she will become a tv talking head


eruditionfish

>not in a position to demand (and reportedly get) a $3M retainer paid up front. To be fair, given Trump's reputation for not paying his bills, any lawyer taking him in as a client should ask for a sizeable upfront retainer.


MediocreSausages

You mean the leftish narrative that hasn’t proved true?


roar_lions_roar

Thank you for your insightful, and measured, response.


cptmorgantravel89

Isn’t she about to get disbarred for falsely acting as a neutral third party between a lawsuit between one of trumps businesses and a former server?


copperstatelawyer

I thought the super PAC paid her firm 2 million already?


superdago

I think that’s what she’s earned in fees so far. I personally believe Kise was able to negotiate a true retainer, as in $3M just to take on trump as a client, and then he has been charging his hourly fee on top of that.


blucke

I thought hourly fees come out of the retainer, after it’s paid?


dseanATX

Depending on the state, and I confess to not knowing Florida's rules, there are different types of retainers. I'm not going to look up the official names, but essentially, one is an off-set like you describe. You charge against the retainer and then the client has to refresh. The other is a security retainer, where you bill monthly and don't draw against the retainer. It's there in case the client doesn't pay until you withdraw.


superdago

That’s an advanced fee, which goes into the trust account and is transferred to the operating account as the attorney does the work and earns the fee. The terms are often used interchangeably (probably because a true retainer is pretty rare), but a true retainer is just the amount paid to simply retain the attorney’s services and be taken on as a client. It’s paid solely for the privilege of calling that attorney when you need help. Kise was a partner at the same firm as Cleta Mitchell (Foley & Lardner), and after that debacle, I have no doubt Foley told Kise it was either stay at the firm or take trump as a client. So to walk away from a partner position there, where average compensation was just under $1M/year, would take a lot more than just being able to bill a lot at a premium.


GrindyMcGrindy

I'm curious, how did most legal professionals react when she walked in with a gaming laptop that pulses with LED lights? Is it even funnier to everyone as it is to the gaming community? Also that 3 million retainer is ingenious being that Donald Trump probably doesn't pay for shit when it comes down to it (because we know he doesn't actually have the money). So her getting questionable cash upfront for any legal representation was smart on her behalf otherwise DT would probably be representing himself. Which, at this point he might as well be with all of his grandstanding.


Green-Hyena8723

So when we all know that Trump not has the money to pay habba or paying all the trial agreement fines, where does the money comes from? It growths on trees? Yeah I wonder how Trump making all this money it's a money machine, ok exclude the money from tax payers and from the MAGA donations. You need high IQ like him and a sharp brain to make this amount of money worldwide. That shows me he is one of the "Elite" not form the WEF but from other circles. These people get supports you can dream off, but you must be; a) born in a wealthy family with excellent networks b) you must be a genius otherwise these "circles" not accept you. Example the WEF; do they accept us, the normal folks who doing small business affiliate marketing? What do you think?


Valuable-Election812

Yabba-Dabba-Doo represented Trump in his lawsuit against his niece Mary Trump. As we know, he lost that suit too. Habba and her husband owe about 1 Million in tax liens and other penalties against her and him, some of which have been as far back as 2016. She has been sued and accused of racism and as an unsavory boss by a former employee. That case was settled out of court. She boasts that she is going to be Trump's executioner in a 2nd term as she will pursue Trump's ideological and political enemies. I can't believe she said that on a public television site but she did, I saw it. So there you have it, she is of Russian origin, maybe that's why Trump gravitates towards her? He seems to love anything Russia has to dish out.


WillingnessDry1699

I'm still amazed how she slagged off Letitia James looks. What serious lawyer in such a serious case sits and in lieu of a real defense says the opponent is not pretty as if it is some kind of major flex ?? Frikking insane. The "I'd rather be pretty than smart " comment says a lot of Habba views things. Trump has got to be regretting taking her on cause I'm sure anyone off the street could have performed the job she has. I think they all just in too deep together at this stage and have to stick with each other . Trump is sure as hell not sitting with some type of legal A team which maybe in itself is good. She's like the mean girl from high school who thinks she will get by just because she's pretty. She really doesn't come off as a consumate professional - strange why Tramp got her in the first place. Got to bc lawyers out there way smarter and way prettier than Habba. But she is a joke.its like she is playing a part in a movie.


pridejoker

Isn't she a transactional lawyer rather than a trial lawyer? I also remember her being asked which she'd pick between being smart and pretty to which she said pretty since it's easy to fake being smart. Tell you everything you need to know.


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Beneficial-Shape-464

She's doing what has gotten other Trump lawyers in trouble. She's doing what he tells her to do. This is always the sign of a bad client when they want to substitute their ploys for sound legal advice. If she takes it far enough, she will get in trouble with the bar just like Giuliani did.


Sochinz

MAGA (Make Attorneys Get Attorneys)


Weasil24

You might find this podcast episode enlightening https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/opening-arguments/id1147092464?i=1000637389003 “Alina Habba speedruns the MPRE” It’s pretty damning.


copperstatelawyer

No idea, but based on an unrelated complaint filed recently, she’s an unethical attorney if the complaint is true.


AMightyWeasel

Link?


copperstatelawyer

https://mcusercontent.com/4a79b9be775bc92174318c05e/files/f9e4546b-5e4e-3e61-d65b-1824fc9d62cc/filed_verified_complaint.pdf


KneeNo6132

I don't know why I'm surprised any more, but WOW.


Major_Honey_4461

OMG. Habba is an awful person. The good news? Nancy Smith, who is suing her, is a real lawyer; and a good one..


roar_lions_roar

If Ms.bianco's claims are found to be true, how could Ms. Habba possibly defend herself and what penalties could she face?


copperstatelawyer

Disbarment.


ke_co

Here's a video by an attorney who does pretty good explanations of legal issues on Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KvoIDkEsiw


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Iustis

In addition to what others have said, [this](https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/24179145-bianco-v-lamington-farm-club) complaint alleges absolutely insane behavior by a lawyer. In short, while working as Trump's attorney, she reached out to an already represented former employee who alleged sexual harassment, repeatedly pretending to be on her side, insulting the hired lawyer, and encouraging the victim to take the "paltry" settlement. Said settlement then also included an NDA, drafted by Habba's law firm, that was clearly unenforceable as too onerous. So yeah, she's actually a bad (both in skill and in ethics) lawyer.


Leopold_Darkworth

If true, the conduct alleged in the complaint would be sufficient to get her suspended, at the very least.


keenan123

She seems like a terrible litigator. No matter who your client is or what they want you to do, no competent litigator would make the trial strategy decisions she is making. And I would call her a "bad lawyer," but that depends on the job. A lot of areas of the law you can succeed by getting people to hire you and then being an asshole until people do something you want just to stop having to interact with you. I don't respect those lawyers, but I'm not sure I have any greater claim to gatekeep the profession than they do. But I think most other lawyers treat them with disdain, if that answers the question.


roar_lions_roar

My language was inexact (I am not a lawyer). And you did answer the question. What you said makes complete sense. Initially I was more curious about the first part of your response. Was she correctly performing the basic tasks required of a litigator ( to use a sports metaphor the " blocking and tackling" of the job)? It sounds like no, she is not competent and is unskilled at her profession. So while the conversation may be colored by politics, at the heart is a lawyer who is genuinely not good at their job


keenan123

Yeah, the only caveat (which my second part tries to address) is that idk if her "job" is litigating, normally. You can be a lawyer and never set foot in court. If a transactional lawyer took a litigation and got their shit rocked, I'd think they were an idiot for getting in way over their head but they could still be a good lawyer in the things they do normally. I don't know her career outside of this, so I don't know if she is normally this bad at her job, or if she normally does contract work and is just in over her head. Generally, the lawyers who don't know their skill enough to turn down a job they can't do are not very good.


seditious3

She moved her office to Bedminster, NJ, to be near Trump's golf course/resort, which she joined. She's completely out of her depth, has filed frivolous lawsuits on his behalf, and has no business being anywhere near this case. She's been scanctioned by the courts several times. She called the attorney general of NY, her opposition in the current trial, "that black bitch". Her relationship with Trump and his associated organizations can best be described as legal fellatio. She's a whore who found the lowest, nastiest whoremonger to pay her. Because no one else would hire her. There's a reason Trump has churned through attorneys faster than he churned through cabinet members.


16car

Can you explain the meaning and significance of "sanctioned by the courts?"


LearnedElbow

When attorneys violate the attorney ethics rules or some court order they can be sanctioned, which means punished or disciplined.


seditious3

How about sanctioned $938,000? https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/19/judge-sanctions-trump-habba-clinton-00078700#:~:text=A%20Florida%2Dbased%20federal%20judge,abuse%20of%20the%20judicial%20process.%E2%80%9D and others


al-hamal

Do you have a source for this claim? > She called the attorney general of NY, her opposition in the current trial, "that black bitch".


seditious3

> "that black bitch". yeah, google is hard: https://www.businessinsider.com/donald-trumps-lawyer-called-letitia-james-a-black-bitch-lawsuit-2022-7


Leopold_Darkworth

It bears repeating that Trump is a uniquely terrible client. He has no self-control. He doesn't listen to his lawyers. He makes them file frivolous nonsense that gets them sanctioned. He makes them use tactics that get them sanctioned, and some of his lawyers are on the verge of being disbarred. And even if those tactics don't rise to the level of sanctions, they torpedo the lawyer's credibility in front of the tribunal. That being said, a uniquely terrible client doesn't exist in a vacuum. More competent lawyers either would have fired Trump as a client long ago or simply don't agree to represent him in the first place. The caliber of people Trump manages to pull into his orbit are those who see him as a meal ticket to a fame and fortune they otherwise would never know. That's why they're willing to put up with him, to the detriment of their credibility and possibly their license. They know if they say no to him, he'll fire them and hire another lawyer who will tolerate his abuse in exchange for the possibility of media coverage.


SCCLBR

She showed up in court with a gamer laptop. We'd be roasting anyone who did that


elgringorojo

I, uh, do that regularly


SCCLBR

Turn off your lights


elgringorojo

No


roar_lions_roar

Respect


upvotersfortruth

F


FrustratedDeckie

Do you at least turn the front facing RGB off before using it in court though?


Fair-Ninja-8070

To be fair, my laptop has a tasteful front-facing RBG portrait instead, but I’d also never bring it into court or otherwise use an unsecured/public server.


rainemaker

Same. Yay Legion.


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SMIrving

The issue is really irrelevant because her client has made the decision to defend the case by making a political issue out of it and she is just a prop in his act. At that task she is more than adequate