Eastman first emerged as a Trump-affiliated lawyer in December 2020, when he filed a brief asking the Supreme Court to let Trump intervene in a longshot lawsuit to toss out election results in four swing states won by Joe Biden, which ultimately failed. A federal judge in California previously found that Trump and Eastman more likely than not violated two felony statutes in their attempts to overturn the election: obstruction of an official proceeding and conspiracy to defraud the United States. The California native attended Chapman University law school, where Donald Trump's election lawyer John Eastman formerly taught, before moving to Tennessee, and he served for a time as webmaster . The California bar determined Eastman made, "false and misleading statements that constitute acts of dishonesty, and corruption." [26], Eastman served as an attorney for the State of South Dakota, representing it in a denied petition to the U.S. Supreme Court in a constitutional challenge to federal spending. (Chesebro apparently referred to Trump's tweet five days earlier inviting supporters to a "wild" January 6 protest.) [4] A letter signed by three of the Beatles in 1969 during a legal fight over control of the groups business empire. Their connection was both professional and personal. [2][5] He is a former law clerk to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. [20][21] In December 2022, the United States House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack recommended Eastman be charged with obstruction of an official proceeding and conspiracy to defraud the United States, along with Trump and potentially others. On or about December 1, 2020, Attorney General Barr, who headed the United States Department of Justice, which had monitored state elections for fraud and illegality, publicly stated that to date, we have not seen fraud on a scale that could have effected a different outcome in the election.'. They developed a specialty in working with pop musicians whose business had suffered under previous representatives. A private Facebook group named "FrontLiners for Liberty," which included over 50 people and was created in August 2020, showed Thomas as an administrator. [125][127], The University of Colorado cancelled Eastman's Spring 2021 courses due to low enrollment. Andy Cross/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post/Getty Images. He was 83. After CNBC asked Thomas about the group, its public pages were either made private or deleted. A University of Chicago Law School graduate who clerked for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, Eastman has taught constitutional law for decades. In the months following the election, however, the Trump campaign received information from numerous credible sources, including Attorney General of the United States William Barr and members of Trumps inner circle of advisors, that there was no evidence of widespread election fraud or illegality that could have affected the outcome of the election, the notice states. Eastman first emerged as a Trump-affiliated lawyer in December 2020, when he filed a brief asking the Supreme Court to let Trump intervene in a longshot lawsuit to toss out election results in. Donald Trump appears to have committed multiple felonies as he sought to return himself to power on 6 January, a judge said in a Monday ruling that ordered the Trump lawyer John Eastman to. Axios also criticized Eastman for dismissing the eligibility concerns of 2016 presidential candidate Ted Cruz, born in Calgary, Canada, in a 2016 National Review op-ed, claiming they were "silly". Stop the Presses!" The bar review of John Eastman's conduct in the run-up to and aftermath of the Jan. 6 insurrection has begun, and how the case unfolds is uncertain. Trump lawyer John Eastman facing probe by California state bar | Reuters Newsletter | Sent every weekday. Carter concluded it showed the Trump legal team had decided to "evade judicial review to overturn a democratic election" and "forged ahead with a political campaign to disrupt the electoral count. I still cannot understand why Paul acted as he did, George Harrison said in an affidavit. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images) Eastmans lawyer Randall Miller said in a statement that his client disputes every aspect of the Bars allegations, claiming Eastman shouldnt be penalize for simply offering legal advice to Trump. Some of the records sought by the January 6 panel could offer new insight into Eastmans work. We've received your submission. As the House January 6 panel unpacks the results of its months-long probe, lawmakers are expected to spend part of their Thursday hearing examining the role of John Eastman, a once-obscure legal scholar who vaulted into former President Donald Trumps inner circle ahead of the Capitol riot by pushing dubious legal strategies to keep Trump in office. "[98][99][100] Douglas Letter, general counsel to the House, said about Eastman asking Pence to delay Biden's certification, "It was so minor it could have changed the entire course of our democracy. [128] The university also revoked some of Eastman's public-facing duties but permitted him to conduct scholarship. Lawyer John Eastman had claimed the situation had turned him into a "pseudo . Before he urged Vice President Mike Pence to unilaterally hand the 2020 election to Donald Trump, right-wing lawyer John Eastman, who represented Trump after the election, floated a somewhat. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. The Daily Beast reports that the plaintiffs are seeking to pierce attorney-client privilege under the crime-fraud . [emailprotected], Law&Crime's managing editor Adam Klasfeld has spent more than a decade on the legal beat. Eastman also made similar statements outside the White House on Jan. 6, 2021 before the Capital riot ensued. A state bar courthas to rule on the charges Eastman faces and then recommend a discipline if they rule against him. - No, John Eastman, you can't edit your own article here", "Born in the USA-Rethinking Birthright Citizenship in the Wake of 9/11. ", "Here's Kamala Harris' birth certificate. [18][19] On March 28, 2022, federal judge David O. Carter found Eastman, along with Trump, was more likely than not to have "dishonestly conspired to obstruct the joint session of Congress on Jan. 6, 2021". Another lawyer, John Eastman, responded that he was in agreement, saying that if Thomas were to act, "that may be enough to kick the Georgia Legislature into gear because I've been getting a . Mr. Eastman served on the boards of a number of prominent organizations, including the American Museum of Natural History, and two music groups, the National Music Publishers Association and the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, known as ASCAP. The judge ordered the emails released to Eastman's legal team to identify which they asserted were privileged, before allowing a third party to scrutinize them. A day after the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol, the conservative lawyer John Eastman went looking for someone in then-President Donald Trump's orbit to discuss an issue involving his effort . He then earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Chicago Law School, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Government from the Claremont Graduate School. [30], He testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee in 2014 arguing that President Barack Obama's unilateral suspension of deportation for undocumented immigrants was unconstitutional. John L. Eastman, a lawyer for musicians and artists whose representation of famous clients like Paul McCartney, Billy Joel and Willem de Kooning made him a force in the entertainment world, and who played a key part in a power struggle over the control of the Beatles business in the last days of the band, died on Aug. 10 in East Hampton, N.Y. [31], In 1990 Eastman was unopposed in the primary to become the Republican challenger of long-time 34th District incumbent Esteban Torres in California's San Gabriel Valley. Eastman also sent to Republican senator Mike Lee a six-point plan of action for Pence to throw out the electors from seven states to keep Trump in power, which Lee rejected. Separately, in one December 2020 email, Eastman alluded to a heated fight over whether the Supreme Court should take up an election challenge, the New York Times reported Wednesday. Federal authorities had not identified the man as an antifa activist. The two-page memo from attorney John Eastman first was reported in the new book "Peril" by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa; CNN also obtained a copy of the plan, which hinged on Electoral College . Aside from Mr. McCartney, they were best known for working with Mr. Joel in the late 1980s and early 90s, when he sued his former manager and lawyer. The briefing included Giuliani; John Eastman, the attorney behind the theory that Vice President Mike Pence could reject the Electoral College results; White House trade adviser Peter Navarro . The lawyer also repped Trump, 76, in a Supreme Court case seeking to overturn the election results in four states where Trump alleged there d been voter fraud. UpdateJan. The 61-year-old lawyer's rsum features some of the top credentials of the conservative legal movement: clerkships with former Judge Michael Luttig and Justice Clarence Thomas, the chairmanship. A fed-up Herschmann claims he insisted that Eastman only talk about an orderly transition in the future, and encouraged Eastman to find a great fing criminal defense lawyeryoure going to need it.. An audience member asked, "Why do you think Mike Pence didn't do it?" So who is John Eastman? "[21][102], Seventeen months after the election, Eastman continued to press state legislatures to "de-certify" their election results. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Pompeo calls $31 trillion national debt indecent at CPAC, Trump recites Pledge of Allegiance in collaboration on new song with J6 Prison Choir, Bidens laughable, late-to-the-game crackdown on massive COVID fraud, 2024 presidential hopeful Nikki Haley heckled by Trump supporters at CPAC, made similar statements outside the White House on Jan. 6, 2021. lose ballot fight", "Steve Cooley concedes race for attorney general to Kamala Harris", "Should the Federalist Society reckon with members who aided Trump's false election claims? [57] Eastman called the vice president "the ultimate arbiter" of the election in his two-page memo. Eastman purchased the unit at. John Eastman is an American lawyer with an estimated net worth of $5 million. Trump lawyer John Eastman, left, is seen in a video during a hearing of the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection on Thursday. The article was harshly criticized as both a bizarre reading of constitutional law and a possible wink to the birther conspiracy theory, which falsely contended former President Barack Obama wasnt born in the United States. The well-known lawyer had known the former Beatles vocalist for over 50 years. [57], In early December 2020, Trump contacted Eastman, asking him to challenge the results of the 2020 United States presidential election before the Supreme Court. During the 2020 presidential campaign, Eastman wrote a controversial op-ed in August 2020 that falsely suggested the then-presumed Democratic nominee for U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris was not an American citizen and thus not legally eligible for the position. Filing of a complaint "typically takes 2-3 weeks after getting authorization," Yates wrote to Newsline in an email Wednesday evening. His mother had inherited a fortune from the Lindner department store in Cleveland. [62], On December 22, 2020, Ivan Raiklin, an attorney and associate of Michael Flynn, tweeted to Trump a two-page memo entitled "Operation Pence Card," which Trump retweeted two days later. (Courtesy of the Eastmans) A GROUP calling itself The 65 Project has targeted nearly 100 lawyers, including me, state attorneys general and . During his time in law school, Eastman worked on the University of Chicago Law Review. Eastman is the author of the so-called coup memo, a six-point plan to overturn the election results. Eastman emailed Giuliani, saying "I've decided that I should be on the pardon list if that is still in the works." An analysis of Eastman's profile in the nearly 40 years before he became President Trump's lawyer, along with interviews with more than a dozen friends and associates, reveal how Eastman's. An. Lee Eastman died in 1991, and Linda McCartney died in 1998. The State Bar of Californias Chief Trial Counsel George Cardona intends to seek Eastmans disbarment for alleged violations of Business and Professions Code section 6106, which punishes making false and misleading statements that constitute acts of moral turpitude, dishonesty, and corruption., There is nothing more sacrosanct to our American democracy than free and fair elections and the peaceful transfer of power, Cardona said in a statement. [116] One of the eight emails showed Eastman agreeing with Chesebro that bringing a legal argument to Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas would be "our only chance to get a favorable judicial opinion by Jan. 6, which might hold up the Georgia count in Congress." Bar discipline is an instrument ill-suited to . Any discipline such as suspension or disbarring then has to be approved by the California Supreme Court. John L. Eastman, McCartneys Lawyer in Beatles Strife, Dies at 83, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/15/arts/music/john-l-eastman-dead.html. He wrote this new "untainted popular vote" would "help provide some cover" for the legislature to create a slate of Trump electors for certification. The next year, after briefly working in the office of the United States attorney for the Eastern District of New York, he and his father set up Eastman & Eastman. Scholars say there's no VP eligibility debate", "The White Supremacist "Scholars" Pushing the Kamala Harris Birther Lie", "Newsweek apologizes for op-ed questioning Harris eligibility", "Ahead of Jan. 6, Willard hotel in downtown D.C. was a Trump team 'command center' for effort to deny Biden the presidency", "During Jan. 6 riot, Trump attorney told Pence team the vice president's inaction caused attack on Capitol", "Trump lawyer John Eastman said 'courage and the spine' would help Pence send election to the House in comments before January 6", "Trump Lawyer Blamed Pence for Violence as Rioters Stormed Capitol - John Eastman, the author of a memo that some in both parties liken to a blueprint for a coup, sent a hostile email to the vice president's chief counsel as the mob attacked", "Washington Post: Trump lawyer John Eastman blamed Pence for January 6 violence by refusing to block 2020 election certification", "The most shocking new revelation about John Eastman - He and Trump were not just pressing forward despite the mob; they apparently were trying to leverage it", "Memo shows Trump lawyer's six-step plan for Pence to overturn the election", "UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA SOUTHERN DIVISION JOHN C. EASTMAN Plaintiff, vs. BENNIE G. THOMPSON, et al., Defendants. Its unclear if Eastman had information on the high court's usually-secretive deliberations. stands onstage as Rudy Giuliani speaks in Washington on January 6, 2021. Mr. Eastman and his father, who was also named Lee, worked with a long roster of big-name clients over the years, including Andrew Lloyd Webber, David Bowie, Elton John and the estates of Tennessee Williams and the painter Francis Bacon. Lawyer John Eastman, who advised former President Donald Trump as he tried to overturn the 2020 election, forcefully pushed back on claims made by the House Select Committee investigating 6 . He is a founding director of the Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence, a public interest law firm affiliated with the Claremont Institute. To break Mr. Kleins grip over the band, and to secure Mr. McCartneys independence, Mr. Eastman masterminded a lawsuit, filed in London on Dec. 31, 1970, to dissolve the Beatles partnership agreement. The case was settled, and the Eastmans helped Mr. Joel rebuild his business. [37] Cooley advanced to the 2010 California Attorney General election, where he was defeated by Kamala Harris. He was a dean and professor at the Chapman University School of Law. In addition to his son Lee, he is survived by his wife, Josephine; another son, Jay; a daughter, Louise; two sisters, Louise Weed and Laura Malcolm; and 11 grandchildren. The Bar's investigation, announced Tuesday, March 1, focuses on whether Eastman "engaged in conduct in violation of California law and ethics rules governing attorneys following and in . According to the warrant, the phone was to be taken to a forensic lab of the Department of Justices Office of Inspector General. A former clerk to Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, Eastman helms the Center for. ET: This story has been updated to include more information about the disciplinary charges from the notice filed by the bar. The Beatles' Sir Paul McCartney recently took to his Instagram to mourn the death of his brother-in-law, John Eastman, who was also his lawyer. And Eastman wasn't the only one of Trump's legal henchman who knew the plan wasn't legally viable. [109], Days after it became known Eastman and Thomas had communicated by email, Eastman posted on his new Substack blog one email that he captioned, "OMG, Mrs. Thomas asked me to give an update about election litigation to her group. He asserted she could not be a U.S. citizen by birth despite being born in Oakland, California, if neither of her parents was a permanent resident at the time of her birth. His editing was reverted due to conflict-of-interest rules of Wikipedia, and on January 9 he appealed on the article's talk page, where some changes were approved but others were denied.[132]. "[101] Eastman's assertion of privilege for 101 emails was rejected by Judge David O. Carter in March 2022, who ordered the emails to be produced to the committee. February 14, 2022. Kowalke and NJP lawyer Goriune Dudukgian argued Eastman's lifetime membership in the far-right group made him disloyal and therefore ineligible to hold office in Alaska under the state . [2] [3] He is a former professor and dean at the Chapman University School of Law. [106], On June 7, Carter ruled that Eastman must disclose an additional 159 sensitive documents to the committee. Later in the day, when the rioters were expelled from the Capitol and Pence was again presiding over Congress, Eastman told Jacob in another e-mail that Pence should still refuse to certify the election results:[83] Now that the precedent has been set that the Electoral Count Act is not quite so sacrosanct as was previously claimed, I implore you to consider one more relatively minor violation and adjourn for 10 days to allow the legislatures to finish their investigations as well as to allow the full forensic audit of the massive amount of illegal activity that occurred here, Eastman wrote. John Lindner Eastman was born on July 10, 1939, in Manhattan, and grew up in Scarsdale, N.Y., the eldest of four children of Lee and Louise Lindner Eastman. The judge further denied Eastman's second choice, "Taxpayer Advocate/Attorney", but accepted his third choice, "Constitutional Law Attorney". Trump lawyer John Eastman, left, is seen in a video during a hearing of the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection on Thursday. [57] Eastman circulated a two-page outline and memo to the Trump legal team several days later, followed by a more extensive memo later. On June 27, Eastman asked a federal judge to compel the government to return his phone and destroy its records of the phone's contents. The Bar's committee chair said, "For California attorneys, adherence to the U.S. and California Constitutions is their highest legal duty,"[123] adding Eastman, "violated this duty in furtherance of an attempt to usurp the will of the American people and overturn election results for the highest office in the land an egregious and unprecedented attack on our democracy for which he must be held accountable. The California bar slapped former President Donald Trumps attorney John Eastman with nearly a dozen disciplinary charges for false and misleading statements alleging fraud in the 2020 election. [45][46][47] He sits on the board of advisors of St. Monica Academy[48] and the advisory board of the St. Thomas More Law Society of Orange County. Even after the insurrection, Eastman was still trying to overturn the election Even after Jan. 6, Eastman was still talking about the 2020 election not yet being certain. Politics Jun 16, 2022 12:57 PM EST. The Thomas email was among those Carter ordered Eastman to release to the January 6 committee. Eastman attorney Randall Miller said in a lengthy statement that Eastman "disputes 'every aspect' of the action that has been filed against him by the State Bar," and alleged the charges were. "There is nothing more sacrosanct to our American democracy than free and fair elections and the peaceful transfer of power." Carter wrote that Trump and Eastman likely conspired in criminal obstruction of Congress, adding, "If Dr. Eastman and President Trumps plan had worked, it would have permanently ended the peaceful transition of power, undermining American democracy and the Constitution. As the president's actual attorneys backed away from his coup, Eastman rushed in to . [23], In 1989, prior to attending law school, Eastman served as the director of Congressional and public affairs at the United States Commission on Civil Rights. Eastman disclosed the. [65] After receiving sharp criticism about his role in the election aftermath, in October 2021 Eastman asserted the memos did not convey his advice but rather he had written them at the request of "somebody in the legal team" whose name he could not recall. (Reuters) -California attorney regulators said on Thursday they will seek to disbar attorney John Eastman over his involvement in former U.S. President Donald Trump's attempts to overturn the 2020 election. Jacob wrote to Eastman, "Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege." [27], Eastman has represented the North Carolina legislature and the State of Arizona in unsuccessfully petitioning the Supreme Court in cases involving same-sex marriage,[28] abortion,[29] and immigration. [129][78], On December 19, 2022, Eastman and Trump were publicly named during a televised January 6 Committee hearing as being among those who the committee wanted charged for the January 6, 2021 U.S. Capitol attack. Tuesday, March 1, 2022 Categories: News Releases The State Bar of California's Chief Trial Counsel George Cardona announced today that since September 2021, his office has been conducting an investigation of John Charles Eastman (State Bar No. Advertisement. Eastman subsequently implored Vice President Pence to violate the Electoral Count Act to delay certification of the election,[16] via Pence's legal counsel Greg Jacob, who responded by calling Eastman a "serpent in the ear of the president of the United States". Eastman said that she could have subsequently obtained citizenship derived from the naturalization of her parents if one of them had become a citizen prior to her 16th birthday in 1980, which would have allowed Harris to fulfill the nine-year citizenship requirement necessary to become a senator. While it is unlikely that conservative lawyer John Eastman will testify publicly before the Jan. 6 committee, his name and the legal advice he gave former . [95], In an effort to withhold 19,000 emails subpoenaed by the committee, in January 2022 an attorney for Eastman told a federal judge that they were protected by attorney-client privilege because Eastman had been representing Trump while participating in the January 2 conference call with state legislators; the January 3 Oval Office meeting with Trump and Pence; and while working as a member of the Trump team at the Willard Hotel command center. More than 60 courts rejected election fraud claims by Trump and his allies. [85][86], Appearing on CNN on January 23 to argue that the Trump rally did not incite the siege of the Capitol, Eastman asserted that "a paramilitary group as well as antifa groups" had been organizing "three or four days ahead of time". Former lawyer of former President Donald Trump, John Eastman, appears on screen during the fourth hearing by the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the US Capitol in the Cannon House Office Building on June 21, 2022 in Washington, DC. Emailus. Trump, himself a one-time believer in the birther theory, reacted to the op-ed by telling reporters Eastman is a brilliant lawyer.. The strategy hinged partly on a dubious plan to get swing-state Republicans to sign off on alternate electors falsely deeming Trumpnot Bidento be the winner of their states: In a set of December 2020 emails to one Pennsylvania GOP lawmaker, Eastman suggested legislators could assert the right to appoint an alternate slate of electors or subtract mail-in ballots from Trump and Bidens totals at a prorated amount.. The finding came in the context of civil litigation involving discovery by the Jan. 6th Committee. In the December 4, 2020 email, Thomas invited Eastman to speak four days later at a gathering of "Frontliners," which she described as a group of "grassroots state leaders." John Eastman on Thursday, April 29, 2021. [74][75][76][77][78] Pence later released a letter stating he would not attempt to intervene in the certification process, citing Luttig by name, who later said it was "the highest honor of my life" to be involved in preserving the Constitution. [120] Eastman's attorney said he expected Eastman to be exonerated. Ten documents related to three December 2020 meetings by a secretive group strategizing about how to overturn the election, which included what Carter characterized as a "high-profile" leader. Newsweek defended the column, while acknowledging that they were "horrified that this op-ed gave rise to a wave of vile Birtherism directed at Senator Harris". says there is no evidence antifa participated in storming the Capitol", "Giuliani uses unfounded 'Antifa' argument to defend Trump", "Facebook posts wrongly claim left-wing activist, antifa 'incited' US Capitol mob", "Man who shot video of fatal Capitol shooting is arrested, remains focus of political storm", "Eastman takes the Fifth with Jan. 6 committee", "Trump lawyer pleaded the fifth on 146 Capitol riot questions", "Trump lawyer ordered to respond to January 6 committee subpoena for his Chapman University emails", "Trump lawyer John Eastman turns over 8,000 emails to January 6 committee and withholds 11,000", "Jan. 6 committee concludes Trump violated multiple laws in effort to overturn election", "Jan. 6 panel concludes Trump likely broke laws in trying to overturn election", "Jan. 6 committee alleges Trump, allies engaged in potential 'criminal conspiracy' by trying to block Congress from certifying election", "Trump lawyer knew plan to delay Biden certification was unlawful, emails show", "Trump likely committed felony obstruction, federal judge rules", "Trump Allies Continue Legal Drive to Erase His Loss, Stoking Election Doubts", "John Eastman reportedly pressures Wisconsin legislature to decertify 2020 election", "Eastman provides new details of Trump's direct role in legal effort to overturn election", "Judge sends another trove of Eastman emails to Jan. 6 committee", "Ginni Thomas corresponded with John Eastman, sources in Jan. 6 House investigation say", "The House Jan. 6 panel wants to interview the wife of Justice Clarence Thomas", "Ginni Thomas-tied Facebook group 'FrontLiners for Liberty' could be a new focus in Jan. 6 investigation", "Speaker at meeting of Ginni Thomas group called Biden's win illegitimate long after Jan. 6, video shows", "Federal Agents Seized Phone of John Eastman, Key Figure in Jan. 6 Plan", "John Eastman searched and had phone seized by federal agents last week, he says", "John Eastman loses emergency request to protect his phone data from DOJ investigators", "Federal prosecutors obtain warrant to search lawyer John Eastman's cell phone in January 6 criminal probe", "Judge says Trump knew his voter fraud numbers were false, orders ex-lawyer to give more emails to Jan. 6 committee", "Trump lawyers saw Justice Thomas as 'only chance' to stop 2020 election certification", "Group files complaint with California bar association against John Eastman, lawyer who advised Trump on election challenges", "Request for Investigation of John C. Eastman, California Bar Number 193726", "California bar investigating Trump lawyer for ethic breaches", "Trump lawyer John Eastman's law license in California may be in jeopardy", California seeks to disbar Trump adviser John Eastman over January 6 charges, "Letters to the Editor: Chapman University faculty: John Eastman doesn't belong on our campus", "John Eastman's Statement on His Retirement from Chapman University's Fowler School of Law", "California professor who spoke at Trump rally retires", "CU Boulder cancels courses taught by conservative scholar John Eastman, citing single-digit enrollment", "CU Boulder strips John Eastman of public duties following professor's speech at Trump rally that preceded Capitol riot", "Jan. 6 Committee Refers Former President Trump for Criminal Prosecution", "VIPs expect special treatment.

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