Trump's inaccurate statement regarding the judge and legal advice reexamined.
"Outside the courtroom, Trump shared with reporters his thoughts on not being able to use the phrase 'advice of counsel.' He stated, 'Here, I'm not even allowed to say 'advice of counsel.' This is a new one to me.' Trump implied that he was being stopped from using this phrase, but what he left out was his lawyers' previous agreement with the judge that he wouldn't use it during the trial.
Facts First: Despite Trump's claims, the story is not accurate. Merchan, the judge, denied the use of this phrase due to Trump's lawyer's statement before the trial. If Trump had planned to use an 'advice of counsel' defense, he'd need to waive attorney-client privilege. However, Trump's lawyers informed Merchan that he wanted to use a different defense without waiving this privilege, which led to the judge's decision.
This 'advice of counsel' defense usually means that the defendant won't use their right to shield conversations with their lawyer. Merchan disapproved of Trump's attempt to use the phrase during the trial without fulfilling the necessary obligations. He wrote in March: 'To allow said defense in this matter would effectively permit Defendant to invoke the very defense he has declared he will not rely upon, without the concomitant obligations that come with it. The result would undoubtedly be to confuse and mislead the jury. This Court can not endorse such a tactic.'"
Thus, Trump was not barred from saying 'advice of counsel' out of the blue. It was due to his lawyers' prior agreement with the judge. He wanted to use a modification of this defense but without the necessary obligations, which the judge did not accept. So, he couldn't use it.
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Source: edition.cnn.com
