Trump, Cohen await ruling on seized documents

A federal judge in New York said Monday she trusted prosecutors to catalogue evidence seized in a raid on the offices and residence of Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s attorney. Cohen appeared in court Monday to argue for the right to review the documents before prosecutors look at them to protect information subject to attorney-client privilege. U.S. District Judge Kimba Wood said she would consider appointing an outside lawyer, called a special master, for that task. She also instructed prosecutors to put all the seized documents into a searchable database and share it with Cohen’s lawyers. In court, Cohen divulged that he only had three clients in 2017 and 2018: Trump, former Republican National Committee official Elliott Broidy, and Fox News host Sean Hannity. The revelation that Cohen, a lawyer known as a “fixer” for scandals involving the wealthy, represented Hannity drew gasps and laughter from those in the courtroom. Hannity addressed the issue on his program and via Twitter, saying Cohen never represented him in any legal matter and only gave him advice about real estate. The parties still await a final ruling from the judge on the matter. The documents were seized as part of an investigation into Cohen’s business dealings, which included paying $130,000 to Stephanie Clifford, also known as Stormy Daniels, as part of a nondisclosure agreement about an alleged affair she had with Trump in 2006.