LOS ANGELES _ A federal judge postponed a ruling on a request by President Donald Trump and his personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, who is now the subject of a federal investigation, for a 90-day delay of a lawsuit filed against them by porn star Stormy Daniels.
U.S. District Court Judge S. James Otero took the request under submission Friday, saying that the FBI's recent raids on Cohen's New York office, home and hotel room suggest he may be facing a criminal indictment.
"It is substantially likely there is going to be criminal action to follow," Otero said, given that the warrant was approved by a federal judge. Cohen's lawyers were clearly correct to advise him of his rights to avoid self-incrimination, he added.
The judge said he would look at potentially severing a defamation complaint by Daniels against Cohen _ a move that would allow him to hear a motion by Cohen's lawyers to dismiss that part of the lawsuit.
Otero gave Cohen until Wednesday to file a declaration stating whether he plans to assert his 5th Amendment rights in the Daniels' case. A final decision will follow.
Lawyers for the president and Cohen argued the raids on Cohen's home and offices are part of a criminal investigation that overlaps Daniels' suit, which seeks to void a contract that bars her from talking publicly about what she says was a 2006 sexual encounter with Trump. Federal authorities have not publicly revealed the focus of their investigation.
If the lawsuit in Los Angeles federal court proceeds without delay, Cohen would be forced to choose between defending himself in deposition testimony or exercising his Fifth Amendment rights, his attorneys argued.
Daniels' attorney, Michael Avenatti, however, called for the suit to move forward without delay, arguing in court papers that Cohen can invoke his right against self-incrimination. He wrote that neither Cohen nor the president offered any proof that the raids were connected to Daniels' contract.
Daniels has said she had sex with Trump after they met at a Lake Tahoe golf tournament in 2006, shortly after his wife, Melania, gave birth to their son, Barron. Karen McDougal, Playboy's 1998 Playmate of the year, has said that she, too, had a tryst with Trump at the event.
A few weeks before the 2016 presidential election, Daniels _ whose real name is Stephanie Clifford _ sought to go public about her affair with Trump, but he and Cohen "aggressively sought to silence Clifford as part of an effort to avoid her telling the truth, thus helping to ensure he won," she alleged in court papers. As part of the agreement, Cohen paid her $130,000.
Common Cause and other groups have questioned whether the payment amounted to an illegal campaign contribution.
Cohen has said he used personal funds to settle with Daniels and none of the money came from Trump, his companies or his campaign. Cohen's lawyers are seeking to resolve the case by arbitration.
Daniels wants the judge to invalidate her confidentiality agreement, in part because Trump did not sign it.
Lawyers for Trump say she already has broken the deal and could owe the president as much as $20 million in damages. The confidentiality pact requires Daniels to pay the president $1 million each time she violates its terms.
