Stormy Daniels has changed her lawsuit against President Donald Trump‘s personal attorney to include defamation, a day after her 60 Minutes interview aired.
Daniels cites Michael Cohen’s Feb. 13 statement as an example of defamation, according to TMZ, which obtained the amended lawsuit. At the time, Cohen acknowledged that Daniels was paid $130,000 to keep quiet about her alleged 2006 affair with Trump before the 2016 Presidential election, but claimed the money came from his “own personal funds.”
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Cohen also said, “Just because something isn’t true doesn’t mean that it can’t cause you harm or damage,” which Daniels’ lawsuit specifically pointed to as defamation.
“It was reasonably understood Mr. Cohen meant to convey that Ms. Clifford is a liar, someone who should not be trusted, and that her claims about her relationship with Mr. Trump is ‘something [that] isn’t true,’” Daniels’ lawyer, Michael Avenatti, said in the lawsuit referring to Daniels’ real name.
According to the lawsuit, Cohen statement resulted in Daniels facing “physical threats of violence to her person and life, as well as hatred, contempt, ridicule, and shame.”
Avenatti also wants to keep the lawsuit in the courts, while Trump’s team wants the case handled in arbitration. Daniels’ attorney also wants the confidentiality agreement Daniels signed gets invalidated because Trump did not sign it.
The new complaint also says the payment should be considered a violation of campaign finance laws on contributions, reports the Washington Post. Cohen’s payment could be considered a contribution that should have been publicly reported. Government watchdog group Common Cause also said it should be considered a violation and filed complaints to the Federal Election Commission and the Justice Department.
Daniels claims she had a sexual encounter with Trump in 2006 after meeting at a celebrity golf tournament. Before the 2016 election, she agreed to sign a non-disclosure agreement and said she received $130,000.
According to the Washington Post, Daniels sued Cohen, Trump and Essential Consultants, a limited liability company Cohen set up to pay Daniels, on March 6. In January, the Wall Street Journal reported that Cohen established Essential Consultants on Oct. 17, 2016, less than a month before the election, in Delaware, specifically to pay Daniels.
During her 60 Minutes interview, Daniels suggested Cohen had something to do with threats she faced before the payment. Cohen’s attorney Brent H. Blakely called her comments “false and defamatory” and insisted she apologize. However, the new complaint does not refer to the interview.
Trump has denied having an affair with Daniels.
