Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani suffered another blow when his former friend and longtime lawyer signed a lawsuit for more than $1.4 million in unpaid legal fees.
Robert Costello and his law firm, Davidoff Hutcher & Citron LLP, claim Giuliani only paid them $214,000 and still has a $1.36 million tab. Giuliani’s last payment, according to the lawsuit, was $10,000 on September 14 — about a week after Trump hosted a $100,000-a-plate fundraiser for Giuliani at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey.
The legal fees are largely related to Giuliani’s attempts to keep Donald Trump in power following his defeat in the 2020 presidential election. It was earlier reported that Giuliani “begged” Trump to pay his legal fees during a reunion at Mar-a-Lago over the summer.
Giuliani said The New York Times that he was “personally hurt” by Costello’s actions. “It’s a shame when lawyers do things like this, and all I will say is that their bill far exceeds anything approaching legitimate fees,” he added.
The two men first met when Costello was a law student working for Giuliani’s federal prosecutor’s office in Manhattan, as the Brooklyn native earned his reputation by taking down some of the city’s biggest underworld figures. the Big Apple.
Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani is being sued by his lawyers for $1.4 million in unpaid fees.
Giuliani was represented by Robert Costello in cases ranging from investigations into Ukraine transactions to investigations related to the 2020 election.
Costello disputed Giuliani’s claims that he was overcharged and said his complaints about pricing only emerged after the lawsuit was filed.
“He’s a little late to this party, it’s too late for this frivolous claim, as he will find out in court,” Costello said.
Costello, a partner at Davidoff Hutcher & Citron, served as Giuliani’s attorney from November 2019 to July 2023.
In separate remarks to CBS News, Costello said Giuliani had been receiving bills since 2019 and had not paid them.
“I’m sorry he took the low road because he feels hopeless,” he told the outlet.
“In violation of the Service Agreement, Defendant failed to pay Plaintiffs the balance of $1,360,196.10 of the total amount owed, although properly demanded,” a section of the lawsuit states.
If the lawsuit is successful, in addition to the nearly $1.4 million, Giuliani will also have to pay the firm’s legal fees for filing the suit.
He has represented Giuliani in cases ranging from an investigation into his business dealings in Ukraine, which culminated in an FBI raid on his home and office in April 2021, to state and federal investigations into his work following Trump’s 2020 electoral defeat.
Costello and his firm said in their lawsuit that they also helped represent Giuliani in various civil lawsuits filed against him and in disciplinary proceedings that led to the suspension of his law licenses in Washington, D.C. and New York .
Costello said Giuliani had been receiving bills since 2019 and had not paid them
If the lawsuit is successful, in addition to the nearly $1.4 million, Giuliani will also have to pay the firm’s legal fees for filing the suit.
The former mayor isn’t the only Trump loyalist in Costello’s crosshairs: In February, the lawyer sued Steve Bannon for unpaid legal fees.
The former mayor isn’t the only Trump loyalist in Costello’s crosshairs: In February, the lawyer sued Steve Bannon for unpaid legal fees. In that case, a New York judge ordered the former Trump strategist to pay $500,000.
Giuliani, Trump and 17 others were indicted last month in Georgia, accused by Fulton County Prosecutor Fani Willis of conspiring to overturn Joe Biden’s election victory. Giuliani has pleaded not guilty to charges that he acted as Trump’s main co-conspirator.
Giuliani, who became known for his leadership and earned the nickname “America’s Mayor” following the September 11 attacks, could face a hefty financial penalty after a judge held him responsible last month in a defamation lawsuit filed by two Georgians. election workers who say he falsely accused them of fraud.
The judge has already ordered Giuliani and his companies to pay more than $130,000 in legal fees for the women.
Giuliani’s son, Andrew, said last week that the Bedminster fundraiser is expected to raise more than $1 million for Giuliani’s legal fees and that Trump has pledged to hold a second event in his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, later in the fall or early winter.
In the meantime, Giuliani tried to raise money in other ways.
In July, he listed his Manhattan apartment for $6.5 million. After his indictment, he directed his social media followers to his legal defense fund’s website. To save money, Giuliani represented himself in some legal disputes.
Last year, a judge threatened Giuliani with jail time in a dispute over money owed to Judith, his third ex-wife. Giuliani said he was making progress paying off the debt, which she said was more than $260,000.
In May, a woman who said she worked for Giuliani sued him, alleging that he owed her nearly $2 million in unpaid wages and that he coerced her into having sex. Giuliani has denied the allegations.
