John Eastman requests a delay in disbarment proceedings, citing $3 million in legal fees

Former President Donald Trump’s 2020 election campaign lawyer John Eastman asked a judge to pause his disbarment so he can maintain working as an attorney, citing “legal fees” he’s incurred for being indicted in a separate criminal case.

State Bar Court of California Judge Yvette Roland last week found Eastman culpable for 10 of the 11 disciplinary charges levied against him in a lengthy decision in which the California Supreme Court will issue a final verdict. Eastman contends that if her decision is not stayed, he will lose his ability to make a living at a time when his legal bills could rise to “$3 million or more before the matters have run their course.”

“If the Order placing Dr. Eastman on inactive enrollment is not stayed, not only would it be highly prejudicial to Dr. Eastman, it would also be highly prejudicial to his clients,” Eastman’s attorney Randall Miller wrote in a motion Wednesday evening.

Attached to the motion were six declarations by Eastman’s current clients, including Reps. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), saying that Eastman has been working with them on a number of matters, including their “campaign committee” and “joint fundraising committee.”

“The time and energy he has already expended in preparing the case, obtaining documentation via public records requests, and defending against multiple motions to dismiss strongly favor his continued representation in the matter,” both Republican lawmakers wrote in their separate declarations.

Gaetz also wrote that the “various charges and allegations against Dr. Eastman are meritless and politically motivated” and that the judge’s decision should be reversed.

Although the former Trump campaign attorney is also licensed to practice law in Washington, D.C., his request cited additional clients who are residents of the state of California.

According to the State Bar of California database, Eastman’s name reads in bold letters: “Not Eligible to Practice Law.”

Eastman, a former Chapman University law school dean, faced 11 counts of ethical and legal violations for his post-2020 election activities ahead of the Jan. 6 Capitol attack. He and Trump, along with 17 others, were also charged in Georgia over an alleged plot to overturn the election results in August last year.

Eastman’s trial in California began in June and continued intermittently until early November. An initial complaint was filed in October 2021 by States United Democracy Center, a left-leaning election law organization, and the state bar brought its case in early 2023.

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Eastman told the Washington Examiner the appeal to the California Supreme Court will “come later in the month.”

Read the full request to stay Eastman’s disbarment:

Sbc-23-O-30029 – Respondent s Motion to Stay Thecourt s Order Placing Him on Inactive Enrollment by Kaelan Deese on Scribd