Michael Avenatti Says Law Firm's Bankruptcy is 'Irrelevant,' Not Related to Stormy Daniels Case
Stormy Daniels's attorney Michael Avenatti called an article about one of his law firms being hit with a $10 million judgment on Tuesday "irrelevant" to the adult film star's case.
"Nonsense. Completely different law firm - no ties to Daniels case. Irrelevant. Over blown. Sensational reporting at its finest. Check the facts next time please and report accurately," Avenatti tweeted.
The Los Angeles Times reported that Avenatti's firm was slapped with the judgment in U.S. Bankruptcy Court after he had previously agreed to pay $2 million to a former colleague by the name of Josh Frank. Frank said he was cheated out of the money when he used to work at the Newport Beach firm in California, the LA Times previously reported.
Last week, Avenatti had told Frank that the $2 million would be paid last week, but Avenatti and the firm did not keep his promise, the LA Times reported. It was also discovered that Avenatti defaulted on $440,000 in back taxes it said it would pay to the IRS under an additional bankruptcy settlement for the law firm, according to the LA Times.
Avenatti made an agreement with the IRS that he would pay the $2.4 million on January 30 for a bankruptcy settlement on back taxes, and penalties and interests, according to court documents obtained by the LA Times. The documents stated that $1.3 million of that money was not given to the government and was withheld from employees at the firm.
The IRS told the publication that Avenatti has paid about $1.5 million of the money that was due but did not pay the recent payment of $440,291. The lawyer blamed the unpaid taxes on a payroll company that was not identified, the LA Times reported.
The report from the LA Times did not state anything about Daniels or the case the two have against President Donald Trump.
In a statement to Newsweek, Avenatti clarified his response to the LA Times and said that the law firm that was hit with the judgment does not represent Daniels. He also claimed it had nothing to do with him personally.
"Nothing has been issued against me personally. Nothing. The law firm involved is not even the same law firm that represents Ms. Daniels," Avenatti wrote.
