Stormy Daniels Says Cohen's Request for Gag Order Is Premature

(Bloomberg) -- Stephanie Clifford, the adult-movie actress who goes by Stormy Daniels, is opposed to a request by Michael Cohen, Donald Trump’s longtime attorney, to stop her lawyer from discussing the lawsuit against him and the president himself.

Cohen’s request is premature and unjustified because the lawsuit is stayed and no jury trial is scheduled, Clifford said in a filing Monday in federal court in Los Angeles. In addition, there’s no reason to think a gag order would stop negative coverage, Clifford said.

“If not Mr. Avenatti, a litany of television news pundits will inevitably continue to discuss and analyze the action and the developments in the case,” according to Clifford’s filing. “Because of the nature of today’s media -- particularly television news and Internet media -- reporting of opinions concerning all conceivable aspects of the case will not stop.”

Cohen, Trump’s personal lawyer, claims Avenatti’s public attacks may deprive him of his right to a fair trial in Clifford’s suit, which seeks to nullify a hush agreement she signed in 2016 to keep quiet about an alleged tryst with Trump more than a decade ago.

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