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Donald Trump's niece, Mary Trump, has said his convincing win in the Iowa caucuses has been "undermined" by departures from his legal team.
Joseph Tacopina withdrew as a lawyer for the former president ahead of representing him in two major cases in New York. This occurred on the same day Trump romped home with over 50 percent of the vote among Republican supporters in Iowa.
Three lawyers from the firm Tacopina, Seigel & DeOreo are dropping out, which Mary Trump said on her Substack page could have a "devastating impact on a case."
In a blog post titled "Donald's Iowa Victory Undermined" she said: "There are a few reasons why the loss of counsel is a major set back for any defense. Typically, legal counsel develops a theory of the case in order to help guide preparation. This close to trial, lawyers will have spent hundreds, perhaps thousands of hours compiling evidence and gaining an understanding of the nuances of the case.
"New lawyers might not have to start from scratch, but catching up would be a difficult task."
There is no love lost between Mary Trump and her uncle. Her 2020 memoir, Too Much and Never Enough, was critical of Donald Trump.
A high turnover of lawyers for the former president is not unusual, and he is used to seeing his legal team grow and shrink.
He replaced his top defense lawyer Drew Findling with attorney Steve Sadow a matter of hours before he was arraigned in a separate criminal case in Georgia in August last year.
But Tacopina's withdrawal comes on the eve of one major civil case and two months before a criminal trial.
The attorney was set to argue on behalf of the 45th president in a criminal case in Manhattan regarding alleged hush money payments made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. A request to withdraw their services was filed in court by Tacopina, Chad D. Seigel and Matthew G. DeOreo on January 15.
Trump is alleged to have attempted to hide Daniels' claims they had an affair and used false business records to cover up the payments. He pleaded not guilty in the case and says the 34 felony counts against him are politically motivated.
The second case begins today and will determine the amount Trump must pay journalist E. Jean Carroll, who accused Trump of rape.
She was awarded $5 million last year by a jury that found Trump sexually assaulted and defamed her. The jury did not find him liable for rape.
Carroll is seeking $10 million in damages in the trial that begins today.
It is not immediately clear why Tacopina has dropped out of Trump's legal team. Newsweek has approached him and a spokesperson for Trump via email for comment.
Former federal prosecutor Michael McAuliffe told Newsweek there could be a "number of reasons" behind the decision by Tacopina, Seigel & DeOreo.
"The attorney-client relationship might have suffered a fundamental breach of confidence, running in either or both directions," he said. "A strong-willed client who thinks he or she is more of a lawyer than the actual lawyer can create an untenable scenario for that lawyer to continue representing the client's interests."
He added that a failure of payment could also be the reason, but there is no current evidence for this and Tacopina did not cite a reason behind his decision.
A difference of opinion could also have been behind the split. Under advice from his lawyers, including Tacopina, Trump did not testify in the previous civil trial brought by Carroll.
In December last year, Trump said on his Truth Social media platform that choosing not to testify was "not good advice."
About the writer
Benjamin Lynch is a Newsweek reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is U.S. politics and national affairs and he ... Read more