Giuliani's lawyers seek to withdraw from legal fight over US$148M defamation judgment against him

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani speaks to the members of the media as he leaves court in New York, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York -

Two lawyers say they can no longer represent Rudy Giuliani in a legal fight over property he's been ordered to give up to satisfy part of a $148 million defamation judgment against him. They asked a judge to remove them from the case, citing disagreements with the former New York City mayor.

The request in federal court comes a week after a judge ordered Giuliani to turn over by Friday a Mercedes that once belonged to actress Lauren Bacall, an heirloom watch and other prized assets to two former Georgia election workers who sued him over his remarks about them as he fought to overturn President-elect Donald Trump’s 2020 election loss.

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The women were awarded the judgment last year. Giuliani then filed for bankruptcy, but a judge cut that short after finding that the ex-mayor had flouted the process. Lawyers for the election workers, Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Wandrea “Shaye” Moss, say Giuliani has avoided turning over his assets.

In a filing late Wednesday, attorney Kenneth Caruso sought permission for himself and co-counsel David Labkowski to stop representing Giuliani.

Caruso wrote that lawyers may withdraw from representing clients when there is a “fundamental disagreement,” or when a client insists on presenting a claim that is not warranted under the law and cannot be supported by a good-faith argument, or when the client fails to cooperate.

Several paragraphs of the publicly posted filing are blacked out. The redacted version does not provide details on possible issues.

A representative for Giuliani didn’t immediately respond to an email and a phone call seeking comment.

Giuliani has until Monday to oppose the motion.

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The massive defamation judgment stems from Giuliani’s role in pushing Trump’s unfounded claims that the election was stolen from him. That effort also resulted in pending criminal charges against Giuliani in Georgia and Arizona.

The ex-mayor and longtime Trump ally has been defiant amid the collection efforts, which have stretched past an Oct. 29 deadline. He told reporters outside court last week he was the victim of a “political vendetta.” On Election Day, Giuliani was seen riding near a polling place in Palm Beach, Florida, in a Mercedes that appeared to be the car he was supposed to turn over.

Giuliani, who has since been disbarred in New York and Washington, had falsely accused Freeman and Moss of ballot fraud, saying they snuck in ballots in suitcases, counted ballots multiple times and tampered with voting machines.