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Rudy Giuliani was flanked by two attorneys at a desk in a small conference room as he attended a federal bankruptcy court hearing. The hearing often felt more like a casual and extensive interview about his financial matters rather than a formal investigation into how he can resolve his financial situation.
On Wednesday, a hearing took place near Wall Street in Manhattan, just a short distance from Cipriani. This is the same location where a former mayor of New York City, who once served as attorney for Donald Trump, joined the ex-president and his supporters in December to kick off his potential 2024 campaign.
In under two months, Mr. Giuliani appeared in a bankruptcy court on the fifth floor of a building nearby. This was the first time he spoke about his financial troubles since declaring Chapter 11 bankruptcy. He had been ordered to pay nearly $150 million for falsely spreading information during the election.
The committee reviewed numerous financial documents, examining the potential consequences of ongoing legal cases involving claims of slander and other accusations that may further harm the ex-mayor’s finances. This individual’s income primarily comes from a podcast and radio career that is only slightly profitable.
He expressed optimism that it will result in higher profits.
During the court proceedings, it was stated that Mr. Trump’s campaign and the Republican National Committee were in debt of approximately $2 million for his baseless attempts to challenge the election results following the 2020 presidential election.
According to The Independent, Rudy Giuliani claims to have no secrets following his bankruptcy court appearance.
The 79-year-old stated that there was an unspoken understanding to provide free support for the ex-president, as well as his disbarment and the numerous lawsuits that have ensued.
During a three-hour hearing, multiple statements were made that provided a detailed overview of Mr Giuliani’s financial situation. This was one of the most thorough examinations of his finances to date.
According to the individual, he did not make any payments for home insurance for his properties in both New York and Florida. He was also unaware of any trademarks that he may have, although he does in fact have some. He spends $726 every month on dry cleaning and pays $800 monthly for a storage unit located in The Bronx, despite it containing nothing of significant value. Additionally, he does not possess a driver’s license, relying instead on his spokesperson or other livestream co-hosts (who are also employed by him) or spending thousands of dollars annually on Uber for transportation. It has been revealed that Mr. Giuliani has an outstanding balance of nearly $10,000 due to an overdraft on his checking account, which he blamed on a bounced check.
The ex-mayor is currently experiencing financial difficulties and is not eligible to receive a pension for his eight-year tenure. In 2021, he fell behind on his tax payments due to a lack of funds and reached an agreement with the IRS to sell his apartment in Manhattan. In order to cover the almost $1 million in income taxes for 2021-2022, he considered using his IRA but ultimately decided to sell his co-op in Manhattan, which has been listed for sale for several weeks.
“However, the bankruptcy eventually came into play,” he stated.
During the hearing, Mr. Giuliani was asked to provide his reasoning for filing for bankruptcy. He referred to a recent jury decision in December that holds him responsible for owing millions of dollars.
The jury in a federal court trial in Washington DC found him responsible for paying $148 million to a mother and daughter who worked in the election and were targeted with death threats and mistreatment due to his repeated false accusations of election result manipulation in 2020.
“I wouldn’t have gone bankrupt, if not for that,” he stated.
Donald is greeted by Giuliani at a campaign rally.
He stated that he was barred from practicing law without justification, following investigations by disciplinary bodies in New York City and Washington that found him guilty of spreading provably untrue claims about the 2020 election while contesting the outcome.
Former New York City mayor from 1994 to 2001, Mr. Giuliani had previously been employed at Bracewell and Greenberg Taurig before starting his own law practice where he was the sole attorney. He stated that after joining then-President Trump’s legal team, he faced significant pressure from the clients of Greenberg, ultimately leading to his departure from the firm.
The individual stated that he provided “unofficial” assistance to Mr. Trump as a “pro bono” volunteer during the 2016 campaign, along with a small group of key legal advisors.
He stated that his main task was to accompany him on most of his journeys and serve as a conduit for receiving all the information.
Mr. Giuliani stated that in November of 2020, Mr. Trump requested for him to assume control of his campaign’s legal team, while Trump’s attorneys, who were aligned with him, made an unsuccessful attempt to overturn the election results in states that he did not win. Mr. Giuliani explained, “At that time, he had a significant number of grievances regarding alleged fraud in the election. He asked me to head that effort.”
He stated that his costs were covered, but he “never received a wage.”
“After assuming control, I was under the impression that the campaign would compensate me for my legal services and cover my expenses,” he stated. “However, when we submitted the invoice for payment, only the expenses were reimbursed, not all of them but most. The legal fees were never paid.”
When asked if he thinks he has a potential case against Mr. Trump, he stated that he believes he could file a complaint against the campaign and RNC, but not against Trump himself.
He stated that he has not calculated the exact amount he feels he is entitled to, but it is estimated to be around $2 million.
Rudy Giuliani was seen exiting a Washington DC courthouse following a verdict that required him to pay $148 million for making defamatory statements about two election workers.
Following his addition to Mr Trump’s team, his earnings significantly decreased. He went from receiving a salary of “around $5-$6 million” at Greenberg to only “probably a million or two” with his own practice, according to him. He was forced to relinquish his clients after his law license was suspended. This resulted in a significant blow to his finances, he admitted.
The decision regarding defamation is part of a lengthening series of legal responsibilities, such as facing criminal charges in Georgia for his actions to overturn Mr. Trump’s defeat in the election. Additionally, he is an unindicted co-conspirator in a federal criminal case concerning Mr. Trump’s efforts to reverse his loss.
He is facing lawsuits for defamation from Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic, both voting technology companies. In addition, a former executive from Dominion has also filed a separate lawsuit against Mr. Giuliani.
Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, has also filed a lawsuit against Mr Giuliani. During a court hearing on Wednesday, Mr Giuliani referred to the complaint as containing “various outlandish claims.”
He rejected Noelle Dunphy’s accusation of sexual harassment as a “completely scandalous and baseless lawsuit that should be thrown out.”
Mr Giuliani has filed several lawsuits of his own, including a defamation complaint against President Biden for using the phrase “Russian pawn” to describe Mr Trump’s former attorney during a presidential debate in 2020, a statement that Mr Giuliani previously claimed has cost him “millions and millions of dollars” from lost clients and consulting business.
Two defense funds, one of which is managed by his son Andrew Giuliani, are providing financial support for his legal challenges. At a fundraiser hosted by Trump at Bedminster club in New Jersey, the fund raised approximately $700,000.
According to his lawyers, a different organization managed by a colleague of Giuliani’s has been established to collect donations from individual donors in amounts of $10 and $20. Newsmax, a conservative network, also held a fundraiser for this organization.
During the hearing, Andrea Schwartz, who is in charge of the US Trustee’s Office, reminded Mr. Giuliani multiple times that the court must approve all of the attorneys from various jurisdictions.
“The only reason we’re here today is because mayor Rudy Giuliani has the courage to speak up and take on the permanent Washington political class, and he refuses to be unfairly censored or bullied into silence,” according to a statement from his political adviser Ted Goodman, who attended the hearing and handed out printed copies to the handful of reporters watching the hearing in an adjoining room.
He stated that the citizens of America are becoming aware of how our justice system is being used for political purposes, which is unacceptable. Our presence here today is yet another instance of this unfairness.
Upon departing the courthouse on Wednesday, Mr. Giuliani stated that he had provided the court with all the information he could and has nothing to conceal.
The source is the Independent website.
