Charles Harder, an attorney with high-profile conservative connections who specializes in suing media outlets, has been hard at work for the Trump campaign, earning at least
Harder is representing Donald J. Trump for President against
ran a libelous opinion piece accusing the president's 2016 campaign of striking a deal with Russia.
brought by adult entertainer Stormy Daniels, who alleged Trump defamed her when he tweeted that she wasn't telling the truth when she said she was threatened to keep quiet about an alleged affair they had.
Harder famously represented wrestler Terry Bollea, aka Hulk Hogan, in a sex-tape trial against the defunct news and gossip website Gawker. A Florida jury in 2016
Bollea's lawsuit was reportedly bankrolled by Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel, a Republican donor and Trump supporter.
Jenna Ellis
Senior Legal Adviser, Trump 2020
Jenna Ellis
Ellis, who comes from a background of socially conservative Christian policy advocacy, is among the most outspoken attorneys counseling Trump's reelection campaign. She regularly appears on conservative media and often fires off dozens of daily tweets.
The former Colorado prosecutor came to prominence in evangelical Christian circles in 2015. That year, she began a three-year stint as an assistant professor of legal studies at Colorado Christian University and self-published a book, "The Legal Basis for a Moral Constitution: A Guide for Christians to Understand America's Constitutional Crisis."
According to WestBow Press, the Christian self-publishing platform that sells the 244-page book, Ellis argues that "our system of government is founded upon the Christian worldview and God's unchanging law, not a secular humanist worldview."
In 2018, evangelical Christian leader and Trump supporter James Dobson appointed Ellis director of his new public policy center. Ellis joined the Trump campaign in 2019.
Since then, she has been involved in drafting
media statements about some of the campaign's
legal battles, sending a cease-and-desist letter to
CNN over polling numbers the campaign alleged were misleading, and
reportedly spoke with a criminal defense attorney for Trump's former national security adviser Michael Flynn.
Lawyers for Trump
In July, at least nine attorneys general pledged to stand with Trump's campaign, joining up with Lawyers for Trump, which aims to provide legal support to the campaign across the nation.
The group is co-chaired by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge and Trump campaign-associated lawyers Passantino and Harmeet Dhillon.
In addition to Paxton and Rutledge, the group initially included Attorneys General Kevin Clarkson of Alaska, Lynn Fitch of Mississippi, Tim Fox of Montana, Jeff Landry of Louisiana, Steve Marshall of Alabama, Jason Ravnsborg of South Dakota and Eric Schmitt of Missouri. But at least two high-profile members of the group have gone through some turmoil since Lawyers for Trump's unveiling in July.
Clarkson resigned from his job in August after news outlets obtained copies of hundreds of flirtatious text messages he had sent to a female state employee who was decades his junior.
In early October, several top aides in Paxton's office resigned and accused him of bribery and abuse of power concerning his dealings with a real estate investor whose offices were recently raided by the
FBI. Paxton, who is also fighting felony securities fraud charges in state court, denied the allegations and rejected calls for his resignation.
Among other high-profile members of the group are former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, who is now a partner at D.C. lobbying firm
Ballard Partners, Trump lawyer and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, and Reagan-era U.S. Attorney General Ed Meese.
Ben Gibson
Partner, Shutts & Bowen LLP, Florida
Ben Gibson
Handling issues for the Trump campaign in Florida is Ben Gibson, a politically connected lawyer who served under the last two Republican governors.
Gibson was general counsel to Gov. Ron DeSantis' transition team and had previously been deputy general counsel to Gov. Rick Scott. He advised both governors on judicial appointments. He was also recently elected chair of Florida's First District Court of Appeal Judicial Nominating Commission.
Gibson recently represented the Florida Chamber of Commerce and several other groups fighting against a proposed state constitutional amendment that would have
legalized marijuana.
Porter Wright Morris & Arthur LLP, Pennsylvania
Several attorneys from Porter Wright Morris & Arthur LLP have been involved in
election-related litigation in Pennsylvania.
The Ohio-based firm has offices in Illinois, Ohio, Florida, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C. The co-chairs for the firm's election law practice are Kathleen Gallagher and Ronald Hicks Jr.
In September 2019, Gallagher was appointed general counsel for the Pennsylvania Republican Party, according to a news release.
"Kathy's deep experience in this area has earned the trust of political leaders in Pennsylvania, and her appointment is reflective of the trust she engenders in her clients," Scott North, chair of the firm's government and regulatory affairs practice group, said in the prepared statement.
Hicks has served as general counsel for Republican political candidates and political action committees and specializes in handling election disputes, including ballot recounts and challenges, according to his bio on the firm's website.
Representatives from the firm did not respond to requests for comment about its involvement with the Trump campaign.
--Editing by Orlando Lorenzo.
