Trump Lawyers Produce More Comically Bad Drafting
Morgan Lewis does great work, with a few exceptions.
Donald Trump (by Michael Vadon via Wikimedia)
A couple weeks back, the media worked itself into a tizzy when word got out that Trump’s lawyers from Jones Day told a federal judge that Trump’s detractors had “no right” to protest. As we pointed out, Trump’s probably right on that one, but the whole affair forced us to ask how a law firm — with edit after edit after edit — could file a motion with such obviously provocative language. A dry, staid “the law is well-settled that campaigns have the right to exclude dissenters from events” would have scored all the substantive points they needed without making the case a top news story.
Not to be outdone in the annals of piss-poor drafting, Morgan Lewis has penned a doozy of a letter ostensibly to clear Trump of mounting speculation that he’s Russia’s bargain basement Manchurian Candidate. This letter was ill-advised in any event, as it simultaneously manages to show Trump is defensive about his Russia ties and remind everyone that he’s never released his tax returns. But tax partners Sheri Dillon and William F. Nelson can’t control what their manic client demands. They could, however, avoid dumb lines like this:
With a few exceptions — detailed below your tax returns do not reflect (1) any income of any type from Russian sources….
And with a few exceptions, I’ve hooked up with every Victoria’s Secret model. What the hell were they thinking with this? Just say, “Your tax returns reflect a few, discrete deals involving Russian funds and we detail these below.” By framing the paragraph around “exceptions,” the whole story is going to be about the exceptions. These contortions just so they can string together the more definitive — yet false — phrase “any income of any type from Russian sources” just blew away any credibility behind the letter. By the way, Trump’s gotten over $100 million from Russian sources according to Morgan Lewis — that’s the amount that they clarify as not “income of any type.” It’s much more relevant to focus on the fact that all his money from Russia came in the course of two transactions that were both known to the public, but instead they’ve decided to focus on this myth that he’s not made any real money from Russia.
And the Internet reacted with the swiftness one would expect:
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I continue to believe that Trump is a micromanaging client who makes absurd language demands that end up undermining his lawyers’ work. That’s got to be it, right? Because I have a hard time believing that attorneys for Jones Day or Morgan Lewis are really this clueless. I mean, they’re both high quality firms boasting highly competent individuals with years of experience.
With a few exceptions.
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(Check out the full letter on the next page.)
Trump lawyers push back against Russia ties in letter [AP via CNBC]
Trump’s Lawyer Inspires an Instant Meme, With Few Exceptions [Gizmodo]
Earlier: Trump’s Lawyers Are Probably Right: Campaigns Can Kick Out Protestors
Joe Patrice is an editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news.
