Targets of Trump’s Justice Department must pay up, even if they win
This year, President Trump has been calling on the Department of Justice to prosecute his perceived enemies — and the DOJ seems to be taking direction.
In the last few weeks alone, prosecutors secured indictments against former FBI Director Jim Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. The White House has signaled more cases may be on the way.
For those defendants, the costs of fighting criminal charges in a high-profile case are enormous, and they can reverberate for years, according to veteran attorneys who represent people in the headlines.
Lisa Wayne has tried 150 cases before juries in the course of her decades-long career. Wayne, now executive director of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, said there’s “no golden rule” when it comes to how expensive the legal bills might be.
The cost depends on what charges a person faces, where they live, how experienced their lawyer is and whether that person needs to hire experts in advance of trial, she said.
“Most people have to figure out, out of pocket,” Wayne said. “And figure out, do they have the savings? Do they have friends and family that can help them? Do they take mortgages on their homes? It can be a very stressful situation for most individuals.”
Three other longtime criminal lawyers put the estimate at between $1 million and $5 million at a small law firm, to $25 million or more at a large one.
Trump himself spoke about some $100 million in legal fees that he faced after his first term in office, for indictments in two federal cases and state charges in New York and Georgia.
Help from former trial partner or a defense fund
Comey, a former deputy U.S. attorney general and longtime federal prosecutor, turned to his former trial partner for help. Patrick Fitzgerald, who famously led the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago and went on to a lucrative partnership at the Skadden law firm, came out of retirement to help defend Comey.
In private practice, Fitzgerald likely commanded more than $2,000 an hour for his legal work. Now, he’s able to set his own rates and may be working not quite for free, but nowhere near full price.
Then there’s Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff of California. Schiff is a longtime critic who helped investigate Trump during the president’s first term in office. Now, Schiff is under investigation for alleged mortgage fraud.
Trump took note in recent remarks from the Oval Office. “Looks like Adam Schiff really did a bad thing. They have him. Now let’s see what happens.”
The key issue is that Schiff owns homes in both California and Maryland, closer to the U.S. Congress. Schiff’s allies have said he accurately filled out mortgage paperwork and consulted with lawyers during that process.
His attorney, Preet Bharara, a former U.S. attorney in Manhattan, called the allegations of wrongdoing “transparently false, stale and long debunked.”
Even so, Schiff created a legal defense fund in August to help cover the legal bills.
The White House said the Justice Department is on the right track with its prosecutions. “The Trump administration will continue to deliver the truth to the American people while restoring integrity and accountability to our justice system,” said spokeswoman Abigail Jackson.
“They should be people that are shamed”
A driving force behind all these investigations is Ed Martin, a lawyer from Missouri with more experience in politics than in the courtroom. Martin could not win Senate confirmation to serve as U.S. attorney in Washington, D.C., after lawmakers expressed concern about his support for people who rioted at the U.S. Capitol nearly five years ago.
Instead, Martin moved to lead a Weaponization Working Group focused on people who have run afoul of Trump.
“There are some really bad actors, some people that did some really bad things to the American people,” Martin told reporters as he started his new post. “And if they can be charged, we’ll charge them. But if they can’t be charged, we will name them. And in a culture that respects shame, they should be people that are shamed.”
That’s not the way Justice Department policy has worked in the past. Prosecutors are not supposed to speak ill of people they lack enough evidence to charge with crimes — or about those who haven’t been charged yet.
“I can’t imagine anything more stressful than being accused by the government and carrying the weight of that as an individual in this country,” said Wayne, of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.
Where to go “to get my reputation back?”
Even if a defendant wins an acquittal, they’ve been through the wringer, facing emotional pressure on themselves and their entire family.
Consider D.C. lawyer Michael Sussmann. He was investigated by a special counsel in connection with his work for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign. A jury in D.C. found him not guilty of making a false statement to the FBI after a two-week trial in 2022.
Outside the courthouse following his victory, Sussman sounded exhausted.
“Despite being falsely accused, I’m relieved that justice ultimately prevailed in my case,” he said. “As you can imagine, this has been a difficult year for my family and me.”
Back in the 1980s, the former labor secretary under President Ronald Reagan faced fraud charges — only to be found not guilty by a jury.
Raymond Donovan responded: “Which office do I go to to get my reputation back?”
Transcript:
ELISSA NADWORNY, HOST:
This year, President Trump has been calling on the Justice Department to prosecute his perceived enemies, and the DOJ seems to be following through. It secured indictments against former FBI director Jim Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James in just the last few weeks alone. The White House has been signaling more cases may be on the way, so we wanted to ask our justice correspondent, Carrie Johnson, about the cost of mounting a criminal defense. Hi, Carrie.
CARRIE JOHNSON, BYLINE: Hi there.
NADWORNY: So first off, how much does a good lawyer cost in this situation?
JOHNSON: Lawyers tell me there’s no golden rule here, but there are a bunch of factors to consider – what charges a person faces, where they are in the country. Defense lawyers will have to review transcripts, FBI files and get ready to cross-examine witnesses. Lisa Wayne is executive director of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. She’s done 150 trials during her career.
LISA WAYNE: Most people have to kind of figure out out of pocket and figure out, do they have a savings? Do they have friends and family that can help them? Do they take mortgages on their homes? It can be a very stressful situation for most individuals.
JOHNSON: I spoke with three other veteran criminal lawyers who said for these kinds of high-profile cases, it could cost a million to $5 million at a small firm, and much more at a big law firm, where some partners charge $2,500 an hour. Those kind of bills could reach $25 million or more.
NADWORNY: Wow. That is a lot of money. Do people facing these kinds of charges have other options?
JOHNSON: Sometimes. The former FBI director, Jim Comey, is being represented by his old friend, a former prosecutor called Patrick Fitzgerald at his old law firm, Skadden. Fitzgerald might have commanded more than $2,000 an hour, but he’s retired now, working for himself and can set his own rates or even donate his time.
Then there’s California Democratic Senator Adam Schiff. Schiff is a longtime Trump critic who helped investigate President Trump during his first term in office. Now Schiff is under federal investigation. Here’s President Trump talking about that recently at the White House.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Looks like Adam Schiff really did a bad thing. They have him. Now let’s see what happens.
JOHNSON: The issue here is that Schiff has homes in both California and Maryland, closer to the Senate. Schiff says he accurately filled out the paperwork and consulted with lawyers and mortgage companies. His attorney, Preet Bharara, a prominent former prosecutor in New York, says these allegations are false, stale and long debunked. Even so, Schiff has created a legal defense fund to help pay his bills.
A White House spokeswoman said the DOJ is on the right track. She says the Trump administration will continue to deliver the truth to the American people while restoring integrity and accountability to the justice system.
NADWORNY: Carrie, speaking of justice, who is doing the investigating at the Justice Department right now? And what do we know about their approach?
JOHNSON: The key figure is Ed Martin. He is a lawyer from Missouri who has had more experience in politics than in the courtroom. He could not get confirmed by the Senate to be the U.S. attorney in Washington in part because of his support for the people who rioted at the Capitol in 2021. Instead, he got a different job in charge of the weaponization working group at DOJ. Here’s what Martin said as he started that job.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
ED MARTIN: There are some really bad actors, some people that did some really bad things to the American people. And if they can be charged, we’ll charge them. But if they can’t be charged, we will name them. And in a culture that respects shame, they should be people that are shamed.
JOHNSON: That is not the way the DOJ policy has worked in the past. Prosecutors are not supposed to be bad-mouthing people they can’t charge with crimes. But that seems to be the way this DOJ and the White House are approaching Trump’s perceived enemies this year.
NADWORNY: So we’ve been talking about dollars and cents of someone’s defense. But what about other costs with being charged with a crime?
JOHNSON: The emotional pressure on people in these situations can be really intense, not just a defendant, but also his or her entire family. They’re in the spotlight, sometimes having to sit there and take it while people say terrible things about you. And then, even if someone wins an acquittal, they’ve really been through the ringer.
Think about D.C. lawyer Michael Sussmann. He was investigated by a special counsel in connection with his work for Hillary Clinton’s campaign. A jury in D.C. found him not guilty of making a false statement to the FBI after two weeks of trial. Here he is outside the courthouse after he won in 2022.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
MICHAEL SUSSMANN: Despite being falsely accused, I’m relieved that justice ultimately prevailed in my case. As you can imagine, this has been a difficult year for my family and me. But right now, we are just grateful for the love and support of so many during this ordeal.
JOHNSON: Back in the 1980s, the former labor secretary under President Reagan faced fraud charges, but he was acquitted by a jury. He famously said then, which office do I go to to get my reputation back?
NADWORNY: That was NPR justice correspondent Carrie Johnson. Thanks, Carrie.
JOHNSON: Thanks for having me.
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