Judge Rules Mistake In Trump NDA Makes It Not Worth Paper It's Written On

[bigtree]

Josh Marshall @joshtpm 2m2 minutes ago
this is pretty key. and amazing that Trump orgs crappy legal product was upended by a pro se litigant https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/judge-rules-that-mistake-in-trump-nda-makes-it-void-could-apply-to-others … via @TPM

Judge Arlene Bluth of the New York State Supreme Court ruled Thursday that errors in the wording of a nondisclosure agreement between President Donald Trump’s team and a former campaign staffer make it much smaller in scope, thus not preventing the case from going to open court, according to a Thursday Yahoo News report.

The initial lawsuit was filed by Jessica Denson, a former campaign aide who said that she experienced “harassment and sexual discrimination” while working on the 2016 bid. Per Yahoo, she is suing for $25 million for being subjected to “severe and pervasive slander, aggravated harassment, attempted theft, cyberbullying, and sexual discrimination and harassment” at the hands of staffers including Camilo Sandoval, her supervisor then and the current acting chief information officer at the VA.

Campaign lawyers countered by demanding $1.5 million in damages, alleging that she broke the signed agreement by publishing “confidential information and disparaging statements.” They then moved to take the case to private arbitration, claiming that she agreed to that when she signed the contract. As opposed to a normal trial, records from arbitration can be sealed.

Bluth ruled that, due to various wording errors and incorrect phrasing in the NDA, it did not prevent Denson from taking her case public.

This could have far-ranging effects, as the NDA Denson signed seems to be similar to the one Trump uses in the White House and at the Trump Organization, along with his campaign. The ruling could be especially topical, as the Trump administration is currently trying to silence former aide Omarosa Manigault Newman by claiming that she violated the terms of the NDA.

read: https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/judge-rules-that-mistake-in-trump-nda-makes-it-void-could-apply-to-others

[exboyfil]

1. Don't worry

Roberts, Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, and Kavanaugh have this covered.

[gratuitous]

2. Maybe

But Trump might have some trouble moving the case from a New York state court to a federal court. And if the suit doesn't raise a federal question, it can't get to the Supreme Court.

[FBaggins]

4. Not quite true

The Supreme Court can absolutely review state court decisions. It's up to them whether a federal question is raised (due process... equal protection... etc.) - and if they're willing to rule for him on the issue itself, they're obviously willing to pretend that they see a federal issue.

[barbtries]

9. not only that,

but before it ever gets that far, there will be depositions.

oh yes. there will be depositions.

[FBaggins]

3. Doubt that it would ever get that far

If whatever she might say was damaging enough to argue before SCOTUS, it's more dangerous than the $25 million she's suing for. They would settle long before then.

[bigtree]

8. maybe they can sue

...the lawyers who wrote the thing.

There's nothing for the SC to see here. I think NDA's have been consistently viewed by courts as 'strictly construed.'

I'm not sure Trump can legally enter into such an agreement with federal employees, though.

[DownriverDem]

16. Didn't listen to us

Don't you get the idea that Americans have to suffer big time before they get it? They were all warned about a Supreme Court under trump.

[jayschool2013]

5. Judge Bluth

There's always money in the banana stand.

[barbtries]

6. that's so great.

it looks like trump has spent his life getting away with all kinds of shit on the flimsy strength of badly worded NDAs.

maybe a lawyer who read this can weigh in: doesn't it also make a difference that he's president now? this is not specific to the campaign worker, but to omarosa and others: they all work for us, no? We pay them. I don't see how it can be that federal workers can be held to NDAs negotiated with the president.

[exboyfil]

11. I think it worse than that

I believe that compelling the signing of NDAs that benefit Trump/Pence and their family is an abuse of power. I can't see how it is much different than bribery. A government employee's relationship is with the government and not an individual even the President. It would be like a manager at a company compelling an NDA on one of his employees that is not authorized by the ownership of the company. The NDA does nothing to advance the interests of the company and it is a fiduciary betrayal.

[barbtries]

14. agreed.

i would like to know the legality of it.

[Cracklin Charlie]

7. Bizarro World?

Presidential Non Disclosure Agreements?

How does that work, in a functional democracy?

[unblock]

12. Official acts wouldn't be covered

But a politician or a campaign could have an nda with its staffers relating to campaign-related information.

[Jim__]

10. I wonder who wrote the NDA.

Could this be Michael Cohen's work?

[Gothmog]

13. trump does not pay his lawyers and so he is using crappy documents

[dawnie51]

15. If Cohen was involved....

you know it's worth zero. As Rick Wilson has stated, everything Dump touches turns to shit.

[Gothmog]

17. A pro se plaintiff beat trump in this case

trump's attorneys were beaten by a pro se plaintiff https://www.yahoo.com/news/judge-says-trump-campaign-screwed-wording-confidentiality-agreements-025613573.html

“There is simply no way to construe this arbitration clause in this agreement to prevent … pursuing harassment claims in court. The arbitration clause could have been written to require any disputes arising out of … employment to go to arbitration. … But it did not,” wrote Bluth.

Bluth’s ruling became public today when Denson tweeted a copy of the order. It is notable because Denson is representing herself and still defeated the Trump campaign’s lawyers. The judge’s decision represents a rare victory for a pro se litigant, the legal term for a person proceeding in court on their own behalf against a party represented by licensed attorneys. Denson, a young actress, declined to comment on this story.

Trump cheats and does not pay his attorneys and so the good firms refuse to represent him. Here trump used a crappy form that was drafted by a weak law firm.

This result makes me smile