NEW YORK — Donald Trump’s lawyer said Thursday the former president will seek to move his New York criminal case to federal court, attempting avoid a state court trial that a Manhattan judge said he expects to hold early next year.

Trump’s lawyer, Todd Blanche, said at a hearing on an unrelated issue in the case that Trump’s defense team plans to file a motion Thursday seeking to have the case transferred from state court to federal court.

Trump pleaded not guilty a month ago to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to hush-money payments made during the 2016 campaign to bury allegations of extramarital sexual encounters.

Trump, a Republican, has denied wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty.

Moving the case to federal court could have a significant advantage for Trump, including broadening the potential jury pool beyond Manhattan, where voters have heavily favored his Democratic rivals.