It was exactly 35 years ago today — June 24, 1986 — when a New York court disbarred Roy Cohn, a controversial lawyer who represented and mentored a young developer by the name of Donald Trump. Far more recently, Michael Cohen, another Trump lawyer, was also disbarred in New York.
This morning, as NBC News reported, Trump’s most recent controversial attorney learned that his law license has been suspended over a series of bogus fraud claims related to the 2020 election.
A New York appellate court on Thursday suspended Rudy Giuliani’s law license after finding he made “demonstrably false and misleading” statements about last year’s election while serving as former President Donald Trump’s attorney.
In a 33-page decision, the court panel wrote, “We conclude that there is uncontroverted evidence that respondent communicated demonstrably false and misleading statements to courts, lawmakers and the public at large in his capacity as lawyer for former President Donald J. Trump and the Trump campaign in connection with Trump’s failed effort at reelection in 2020.”
The ruling continued, “These false statements were made to improperly bolster respondent’s narrative that due to widespread voter fraud, victory in the 2020 United States presidential election was stolen from his client. We conclude that respondent’s conduct immediately threatens the public interest and warrants interim suspension from the practice of law, pending further proceedings before the Attorney Grievance Committee.”
All of this, of course, comes just a couple of months after Giuliani was greeted with federal investigators who were executing a search warrant to enter his apartment and seize electronic devices.
It’s a remarkable fall from grace for a lawyer who was seen as a successful prosecutor, an easily re-elected mayor, Time magazine’s 2001 Person of the Year, and a briefly competitive presidential candidate.
As of this afternoon, Giuliani can’t even practice law in his home city and state because he’s lied too much about ridiculous election conspiracy theories.
At the same time, let’s not overlook the fact that this New York appellate court didn’t just rebuke Giuliani, the court also implicitly took aim at the absurdity of Donald Trump’s Big Lie and the threats posed by the Trump/Giuliani campaign to overturn the election results.
“The seriousness of respondent’s uncontroverted misconduct cannot be overstated. This country is being torn apart by continued attacks on the legitimacy of the 2020 election and of our current president, Joseph R. Biden,” the decision read.
A New York Times report added, “Mr. Giuliani now faces disciplinary proceedings and can fight the suspension. But the court said in its decision that he would be likely to face ‘permanent sanctions’ after the proceedings conclude. A final outcome could be months away but could include disbarment.”
