Attorney John Eastman's ongoing disbarment proceedings for allegedly violating ethics and state law should proceed despite his pleas for a delay, according to a new filing from California State Bar officials.
Prosecutors in the disciplinary case that could cost Eastman his license to practice law said that the trial on the 11-count complaint against the attorney, who advised former President Donald Trump, should resume on Aug. 22. Eastman has sought to delay the trial pending a resolution of an ongoing federal criminal investigation into Trump, along with any trial that may result from the inquiry.
FULTON OR FEDERAL? TRUMP INDICTMENT POISED TO SET OFF COURT VENUE DISPUTE
“The burden on the State Bar of postponing the remainder of the trial for an indefinite period of time, possibly several years, outweighs the burden on respondent in completing the trial,” state bar attorney Duncan Carling wrote in an Aug. 15 court filing.
The filing from the state bar came one day after Eastman, Trump, and 17 others were indicted on racketeering and other charges in connection to their alleged efforts to pressure Georgia election officials to alter the results of the 2020 presidential election.
“The Fulton County criminal case against respondent could take years to resolve, particularly given the number of co-defendants,” attorneys for the state bar added.
Eastman wanted to postpone the remainder of his trial even before the arrival of Georgia charges due to concerns about being a target in special counsel Jack Smith's probe, which described the attorney as one of Trump's co-conspirators in an Aug. 3 indictment, though Smith has not charged anyone other than Trump in the federal case over an alleged scheme to subvert the 2020 election results.
Carling says the state bar has reams of evidence on Eastman that it wants to present in the case before the State Bar Court of California.
“The State Bar has presented extensive evidence to support … charges that [Eastman] engaged in acts of dishonesty and moral turpitude in matters concerning the peaceful transition of power in 2020,” he wrote. “[Eastman] disputes these charges and continues to claim, both in court and in public statements, that the 2020 election was stolen through fraud and that his actions to support efforts to reject the 2020 election results were justified and valid.”
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Carling added that public interest in the case "weighs strongly" and that it would be best to resolve the dispute "as quickly as possible.
Also on Tuesday, Eastman released a statement through his co-counsel, Harvey Silverglate, vowing to challenge the "legal cluster bomb" Georgia racketeering case in "any and all forums."