Michael Avenatti Ordered to Stay Away From Ex-Client Stormy Daniels

(Bloomberg) -- Michael Avenatti was once a constant presence at Stormy Daniels’s side. Now, he’s not even allowed to talk to her.

The California lawyer was ordered by a judge not to contact Daniels after he pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to charges that he stole about $300,000 from the adult film star. Avenatti had represented her in a legal fight against President Donald Trump. Avenatti also pleaded not guilty to extorting millions of dollars from Nike Inc. in a separate case.

Speaking to reporters outside the courthouse on Tuesday, after three court appearances, Avenatti said he’s in the fight of his life. He framed the criminal cases as an epic battle with the Trump administration, which he described as "the ultimate Goliath."

"I intend on fighting these charges and I look forward to a jury verdict in each of these cases," Avenatti said. "I am confident that when a jury of my peers passes judgment on my conduct that justice will be done and I will be fully exonerated."

Avenatti was arrested in New York in March on the Nike charges and indicted on them last week, as well as the additional allegations that he stole Daniels’s book advance and used the money for personal expenses, including a monthly car payment on a Ferrari. Federal prosecutors in California accused him separately of stealing from clients and ripping off a bank,

Avenatti, who surrendered to authorities shortly before 7 a.m. Tuesday, entered his first plea during a brief arraignment on wire fraud and aggravated identity theft charges. He was released on a $300,000 bond. He later entered his plea in the Nike case before another judge, standing in court to say he’s "100% not guilty."

View the TicToc timeline on Michael Avenatti’s rapid rise

The lawyer gained fame as Daniels’s attorney in her battles against Trump, and he took a shot at the president and his son between court appearances.

"Anybody know when the president and Don Jr. are going to be arraigned?" he asked reporters gathered outside the courtroom.

During a pre-trial conference later in the day, Avenatti’s lawyer Scott Srebnick told U.S. District Judge Deborah Batts he will seek to have the Daniels case moved to California, saying the allegations are "essentially the same" as those alleged by prosecutors in Los Angeles, involving accusations that Avenatti misappropriated money from clients.

"It just makes eminent sense for this case to be transferred to California," Srebnick said.

Federal prosecutors in New York oppose the move, saying all of the alleged actions took place in New York and feature none of the same witnesses.

"This is clearly a delay tactic," Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Podolsky said.

Avenatti represented Daniels in her suit over a $130,000 agreement requiring her to keep quiet about having had sex with Trump in 2006. The president denied the affair, but Michael Cohen, his former personal attorney, admitted to federal campaign-law violations for arranging the payment.

The cases are U.S. v Avenatti, 19-cr-373 and 19-cr-374, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York.

To contact the reporters on this story: Chris Dolmetsch in Federal Court in Manhattan at cdolmetsch@bloomberg.net;Erik Larson in New York at elarson4@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Heather Smith at hsmith26@bloomberg.net, Joe Schneider, Peter Blumberg

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