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", "John Eastman Named National Organization For Marriage Chairman", "Claremont Institute - Board of Directors", "What the Hell Happened to the Claremont Institute? John Eastman '64, an entertainment lawyer who represented Paul McCartney, the family of Willem de Kooning, and the estate of Francis Bacon, among other clients, passed away on August 10 at the age of 83. [24] He was also the unsuccessful 1990 Republican candidate for the United States House of Representatives in California's 34th congressional district. Trump lawyer Herschmann testified that on the morning of Jan. 6 he received a call from. [87][88][89] The FBI had announced two weeks earlier there was no evidence of antifa involvement in the siege. An analysis of Eastman's profile in the nearly 40 years before he became President Trump's lawyer, along with interviews with more than a dozen friends and associates, reveal how Eastman's. [6][7][8], Eastman was a key participant in the subsequent attempts to overturn the election;[9][10][11][12] during President Donald Trump's last efforts before the certification of Joe Biden's Electoral College victory, Eastman incorrectly told Vice President Mike Pence in an Oval Office meeting, on January 5, 2021, that Pence had the constitutional authority to block the certification. Eastmans lawyer Randall Miller said in a statement that his client disputes every aspect of the Bars allegations, claiming Eastman shouldnt be penalize for simply offering legal advice to Trump. [57] He also asserted in October that a scenario in which Pence would reject ballots was "foolish" and "crazy," further claiming he had told Pence during their Oval Office meeting that his proposal was an "open question" and "the weaker argument". [23], In 1989, prior to attending law school, Eastman served as the director of Congressional and public affairs at the United States Commission on Civil Rights. The email content in question was a comment by an unidentified attorney that litigating a case regarding the January 6 session in Congress might "tank the January 6 strategy" and so the Trump legal team should avoid the courts. "[54] One day after publishing Eastman's op-ed, Newsweek published an opinion piece by legal scholar Eugene Volokh, titled "Yes, Kamala Harris is Eligible to be Vice President", in which Volokh argues that Harris is a "natural-born citizen" under the U.S. Constitution and is therefore eligible to be vice president. As part of their preparations for the case, Mr. Eastman suggested that his brother-in-law wear a suit and tie to court. February 14, 2022. The California native attended Chapman University law school, where Donald Trump's election lawyer John Eastman formerly taught, before moving to Tennessee, and he served for a time as webmaster . lose ballot fight", "Steve Cooley concedes race for attorney general to Kamala Harris", "Should the Federalist Society reckon with members who aided Trump's false election claims? [91] Black Lives Matter Utah had for months disassociated itself from Sullivan on concerns he might be associated with the Proud Boys. [125][127], The University of Colorado cancelled Eastman's Spring 2021 courses due to low enrollment. Carter concluded it showed the Trump legal team had decided to "evade judicial review to overturn a democratic election" and "forged ahead with a political campaign to disrupt the electoral count. Tuesday, March 1, 2022 Categories: News Releases The State Bar of California's Chief Trial Counsel George Cardona announced today that since September 2021, his office has been conducting an investigation of John Charles Eastman (State Bar No. The 11 charges arise from allegations that Eastman engaged in a course of conduct to plan, promote, and assist then-President Trump in executing a strategy, unsupported by facts or law, to overturn the legitimate results of the 2020 presidential election by obstructing the count of electoral votes of certain states, the bar wrote in a press release. Some legal experts said his continued efforts might increase his criminal legal exposure, though if he were charged he might assert his persistent efforts showed he truly believed the election was stolen. [31], In 1990 Eastman was unopposed in the primary to become the Republican challenger of long-time 34th District incumbent Esteban Torres in California's San Gabriel Valley. [124][125] Four days later, Chapman announced that Eastman had agreed to retire from the university, and the university's president, Daniele C. Struppa, said that Eastman and the university had "agreed not to engage in legal actions of any kind, including any claim of defamation that may currently exist, as both parties move forward". That was what Dr Eastman was urging. In the months following the election, however, the Trump campaign received information from numerous credible sources, including Attorney General of the United States William Barr and members of Trumps inner circle of advisors, that there was no evidence of widespread election fraud or illegality that could have affected the outcome of the election, the notice states. (Courtesy of the Eastmans) A GROUP calling itself The 65 Project has targeted nearly 100 lawyers, including me, state attorneys general and . [96] Eastman relinquished nearly 8,000 emails to the committee in February 2022 but asserted privilege for about 11,000 others. "My dear brother-in-law, John Eastman, has passed . Some of the records sought by the January 6 panel could offer new insight into Eastmans work. The group's front page carried a banner stating, "the enemy of Americais the radical fascist left." [37] Cooley advanced to the 2010 California Attorney General election, where he was defeated by Kamala Harris. He said he would continue with his Spring 2021 position as Visiting Professor of Conservative Thought and Policy at the University of Colorado and intended to then devote full-time effort to his position as director of the Claremont Institute's Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence. The plan called for legislators to express concern about absentee ballots to justify disqualifying tens of thousands of them, then using historical voting data to "discount each candidates' totals by a prorated amount" to arrive at a significant Trump lead. He is a founding director of the Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence, a public interest law firm affiliated with the Claremont Institute. An audience member asked, "Why do you think Mike Pence didn't do it?" The Bar's committee chair said, "For California attorneys, adherence to the U.S. and California Constitutions is their highest legal duty,"[123] adding Eastman, "violated this duty in furtherance of an attempt to usurp the will of the American people and overturn election results for the highest office in the land an egregious and unprecedented attack on our democracy for which he must be held accountable. The case was settled, and the Eastmans helped Mr. Joel rebuild his business. Trump acknowledged Eastman's help during his speech Jan. 6, 2021. Lee Eastman died in 1991, and Linda McCartney died in 1998. Even after the insurrection, Eastman was still trying to overturn the election Even after Jan. 6, Eastman was still talking about the 2020 election not yet being certain. His father, who had changed his name from Leopold Epstein, set up a successful legal practice representing high-profile musicians, artists and writers, among them the bandleader Tommy Dorsey and the songwriters Harold Arlen and Hal David. Then he became influential with Donald Trump and counseled him on how to retain power after losing the election. Previously a reporter for Courthouse News, he has appeared as a guest on NewsNation, NBC, MSNBC, CBS's "Inside Edition," BBC, NPR, PBS, Sky News, and other networks. Meanwhile, John Eastman, the law professor who developed the plan to challenge Joe Biden's electors on January 6, 2021, is fighting back against the Left's move to disbar him. "[107], On June 15, 2022, the Washington Post reported that the January 6 committee had recently acquired emails between Eastman and Ginni Thomas, wife of Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas,[108] and the New York Times reported that the committee had obtained the EastmanChesebro email exchange from December 24, 2020. Its unclear if Eastman had information on the high court's usually-secretive deliberations. There is nothing to it. Their connection was both professional and personal. The judge further denied Eastman's second choice, "Taxpayer Advocate/Attorney", but accepted his third choice, "Constitutional Law Attorney". [41][42] He is a director of the Public Interest Legal Foundation, which brings election lawsuits. "[58][59][60] Two days later, on December 12, the Supreme Court declined to hear the case, finding that Texas did not have standing saying Texas "has not demonstrated a judicially cognizable interest in the manner in which another state conducts its elections. His editing was reverted due to conflict-of-interest rules of Wikipedia, and on January 9 he appealed on the article's talk page, where some changes were approved but others were denied.[132]. [49], In August 2020, Newsweek published an op-ed by Eastman questioning 2020 vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris's eligibility for the office. Trump lawyer John Eastman takes Fifth at Georgia grand jury Key Points A lawyer who pushed to overturn the 2020 election loss of then-President Donald Trump invoked his Fifth Amendment. Thomas was the justice assigned to hear emergency arguments from cases in Georgia. But the committee argued Eastman's use of university email destroyed any attorney-client privilege to keep the documents confidential. Eastman wasnt shy about his beliefs: He spoke at a Trump rally near the White House just hours before the January 6 riot, telling a crowd of Trump supporters we know there was fraud and election officials had ignored or violated state law, while he stood alongside Rudy Giuliani (Eastman has argued the rally, unlike the riot, was peaceful). The conflict between Mr. Klein and the Eastmans, and the disagreement within the group over those men, would consume the Beatles for years to come, even after their official breakup in 1970. "My dear brother-in-law, John. Anyone can read what you share. [75][76][77], On January 6, Eastman spoke alongside Giuliani at the "Save America" rally that preceded the 2021 storming of the United States Capitol and asserted without evidence that balloting machines contained "secret folders" that altered voting results. The cause was pancreatic cancer, said his son Lee, a partner in their longstanding Manhattan family law firm, Eastman & Eastman. Eastman made the disclosure to claim attorney-client privilege to prevent the January 6 committee from obtaining 600 of his emails. On or about December 1, 2020, Attorney General Barr, who headed the United States Department of Justice, which had monitored state elections for fraud and illegality, publicly stated that to date, we have not seen fraud on a scale that could have effected a different outcome in the election.'. John L. Eastman, a lawyer for musicians and artists whose representation of famous clients like Paul McCartney, Billy Joel and Willem de Kooning made him a force in the entertainment world, and who played a key part in a power struggle over the control of the Beatles business in the last days of the band, died on Aug. 10 in East Hampton, N.Y. Washington A federal judge on Tuesday ordered John Eastman, a conservative lawyer who devised the legal strategy to keep former President Donald Trump in power after he lost the 2020 election . The Thomas email was among those Carter ordered Eastman to release to the January 6 committee. "[53] Harvard Professor Laurence Tribe was similarly dismissive, telling The New York Times "I hadnt wanted to comment on [Eastmans idea] because it's such an idiotic theory. Eastman briefly met with Trump campaign advisors in a Philadelphia hotel room the weekend after the 2020 presidential election. 6." John Eastman on Thursday, April 29, 2021. And one day later, Eastman called White House attorney Eric Herschmann to discuss legal efforts in Georgia, Herschmann told the January 6 committee in testimony released this week. [90] Eastman referred to an "antifa and BLM guy" who had been arrested after the Capitol incursion, an apparent reference to John Earle Sullivan, a Utah man who some characterized as an "antifa leader" who had supposedly infiltrated the rally crowd to instigate the insurgency. Mr. Eastman served on the boards of a number of prominent organizations, including the American Museum of Natural History, and two music groups, the National Music Publishers Association and the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, known as ASCAP. In 35-page notice of the disciplinary charges, the bars supervising attorney Duncan Carling wrote that Eastman had every opportunity to learn that his election fraud claims were baseless, including from top Trump officials. John Eastman, the former Donald Trump lawyer and possible future Trump co-defendant, has added the potential loss of his California law license to his list of troubles. [36] Eastman finished second in the three-way Republican primary with 34.2% of the vote, behind Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley, who received 47.3%. The strategy hinged partly on a dubious plan to get swing-state Republicans to sign off on alternate electors falsely deeming Trumpnot Bidento be the winner of their states: In a set of December 2020 emails to one Pennsylvania GOP lawmaker, Eastman suggested legislators could assert the right to appoint an alternate slate of electors or subtract mail-in ballots from Trump and Bidens totals at a prorated amount.. John Lindner Eastman was born on July 10, 1939, in Manhattan, and grew up in Scarsdale, N.Y., the eldest of four children of Lee and Louise Lindner Eastman. [117], On October 4, 2021, a bipartisan group of attorneys, including two former federal judges and two former justices of the California Supreme Court, filed a complaint with the State Bar of California asking for an investigation of Eastman relating to "his representation of former President Donald J. Trump in efforts to discredit and overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Stop the Presses!" According to Eastman, he caught COVID-19 at that time. [95], In an effort to withhold 19,000 emails subpoenaed by the committee, in January 2022 an attorney for Eastman told a federal judge that they were protected by attorney-client privilege because Eastman had been representing Trump while participating in the January 2 conference call with state legislators; the January 3 Oval Office meeting with Trump and Pence; and while working as a member of the Trump team at the Willard Hotel command center. Stephen K. Bannon welcomed Conservative attorney, legal scholar, and professor of law John Eastman on Monday's War Room: Pandemic to explain his attorney's letter to Congress citing the illegitimacy of his subpoena regarding the January 6 committee hearings. [116] One of the eight emails showed Eastman agreeing with Chesebro that bringing a legal argument to Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas would be "our only chance to get a favorable judicial opinion by Jan. 6, which might hold up the Georgia count in Congress." [25], Following law school, he clerked for Judge J. Michael Luttig at the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and for Justice Clarence Thomas at the Supreme Court of the United States; he then was an attorney with the law firm of Kirkland & Ellis, specializing in civil and constitutional litigation. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images) John Eastman, a law professor at the Fowler School of Law at Chapman University who had drawn increasing scrutiny over his controversial involvement with some of Donald Trump's more. The filing included an excerpt of a January 6 email exchange with Pence aide Greg Jacob in which Eastman stated, "I implore you to consider one more relatively minor violation [of the Electoral Count Act] and adjourn for 10 days to allow the legislatures to finish their investigations, as well as to allow a full forensic audit of the massive amount of illegal activity that has occurred here. Thanks for contacting us. [129][78], On December 19, 2022, Eastman and Trump were publicly named during a televised January 6 Committee hearing as being among those who the committee wanted charged for the January 6, 2021 U.S. Capitol attack. "John was a great man," McCartney wrote in an Instagram post announcing Eastman's death. Former lawyer of former President Donald Trump, John Eastman, appears on screen during the fourth hearing by the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the US Capitol in the Cannon House Office Building on June 21, 2022 in Washington, DC. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Pompeo calls $31 trillion national debt indecent at CPAC, Trump recites Pledge of Allegiance in collaboration on new song with J6 Prison Choir, Bidens laughable, late-to-the-game crackdown on massive COVID fraud, 2024 presidential hopeful Nikki Haley heckled by Trump supporters at CPAC, made similar statements outside the White House on Jan. 6, 2021. An entertainment attorney for high-profile clients, he was central to a battle over control of the Beatles business empire in the last days of the band. Any discipline such as suspension or disbarring then has to be approved by the California Supreme Court. Just days after the Capitol riot, over 100 Chapman University faculty members signed an open letter arguing Eastman does not belong on our campus, and Chapman President Daniele Struppa denounced Eastman but rebuffed calls to fire him. While it is unlikely that conservative lawyer John Eastman will testify publicly before the Jan. 6 committee, his name and the legal advice he gave former . The emails were stored on servers at Eastman's former employer, Chapman University, which had been subpoenaed and did not object to their release. The other Beatles responded to the lawsuit in frustration. The Beatles' Sir Paul McCartney recently took to his Instagram to mourn the death of his brother-in-law, John Eastman, who was also his lawyer. [4] Aside from Mr. McCartney, they were best known for working with Mr. Joel in the late 1980s and early 90s, when he sued his former manager and lawyer. ", "John Eastman, who pushed a plan to reject Electoral College results, asked for a pardon shortly after Jan. 6", "Eastman sought White House pardon after Jan. 6", "Ex-Law Professor Says His Words at 'Save America' Rally Did Not Incite U.S. Capitol Siege", "Trump lawyer John Eastman: Rally, insurrection not connected", "Rallies ahead of Capitol riot were planned by established Washington insiders", "F.B.I. Eastman first emerged as a Trump-affiliated lawyer in December 2020, when he filed a brief asking the Supreme Court to let Trump intervene in a longshot lawsuit to toss out election results in four swing states won by Joe Biden, which ultimately failed. August 25, 2022 John Eastman, a prominent entertainment lawyer whose clients included the musicians Paul McCartney and Billy Joel, the Abstract Expressionist painter Willem de Kooning, and. John Eastman, an entertainment lawyer and brother of Paul McCartney's first wife, Linda, nabbed a Carnegie Hill co-op for $26.5 million, property records show. Filing of a complaint "typically takes 2-3 weeks after getting authorization," Yates wrote to Newsline in an email Wednesday evening. Chesebro had emailed Rudy Giuliani 11 days earlier with a proposal for Pence to recuse himself from the January 6 certification so a senior Republican senator could count fraudulent elector slates to declare Trump the victor. Politics Jun 16, 2022 12:57 PM EST. "There is nothing more sacrosanct to our American democracy than free and fair elections and the peaceful transfer of power." The bar review of John Eastman's conduct in the run-up to and aftermath of the Jan. 6 insurrection has begun, and how the case unfolds is uncertain. citizen. John Eastman and his wife Elizabeth C'de Baca Eastman. Have a tip we should know? says there is no evidence antifa participated in storming the Capitol", "Giuliani uses unfounded 'Antifa' argument to defend Trump", "Facebook posts wrongly claim left-wing activist, antifa 'incited' US Capitol mob", "Man who shot video of fatal Capitol shooting is arrested, remains focus of political storm", "Eastman takes the Fifth with Jan. 6 committee", "Trump lawyer pleaded the fifth on 146 Capitol riot questions", "Trump lawyer ordered to respond to January 6 committee subpoena for his Chapman University emails", "Trump lawyer John Eastman turns over 8,000 emails to January 6 committee and withholds 11,000", "Jan. 6 committee concludes Trump violated multiple laws in effort to overturn election", "Jan. 6 panel concludes Trump likely broke laws in trying to overturn election", "Jan. 6 committee alleges Trump, allies engaged in potential 'criminal conspiracy' by trying to block Congress from certifying election", "Trump lawyer knew plan to delay Biden certification was unlawful, emails show", "Trump likely committed felony obstruction, federal judge rules", "Trump Allies Continue Legal Drive to Erase His Loss, Stoking Election Doubts", "John Eastman reportedly pressures Wisconsin legislature to decertify 2020 election", "Eastman provides new details of Trump's direct role in legal effort to overturn election", "Judge sends another trove of Eastman emails to Jan. 6 committee", "Ginni Thomas corresponded with John Eastman, sources in Jan. 6 House investigation say", "The House Jan. 6 panel wants to interview the wife of Justice Clarence Thomas", "Ginni Thomas-tied Facebook group 'FrontLiners for Liberty' could be a new focus in Jan. 6 investigation", "Speaker at meeting of Ginni Thomas group called Biden's win illegitimate long after Jan. 6, video shows", "Federal Agents Seized Phone of John Eastman, Key Figure in Jan. 6 Plan", "John Eastman searched and had phone seized by federal agents last week, he says", "John Eastman loses emergency request to protect his phone data from DOJ investigators", "Federal prosecutors obtain warrant to search lawyer John Eastman's cell phone in January 6 criminal probe", "Judge says Trump knew his voter fraud numbers were false, orders ex-lawyer to give more emails to Jan. 6 committee", "Trump lawyers saw Justice Thomas as 'only chance' to stop 2020 election certification", "Group files complaint with California bar association against John Eastman, lawyer who advised Trump on election challenges", "Request for Investigation of John C. Eastman, California Bar Number 193726", "California bar investigating Trump lawyer for ethic breaches", "Trump lawyer John Eastman's law license in California may be in jeopardy", California seeks to disbar Trump adviser John Eastman over January 6 charges, "Letters to the Editor: Chapman University faculty: John Eastman doesn't belong on our campus", "John Eastman's Statement on His Retirement from Chapman University's Fowler School of Law", "California professor who spoke at Trump rally retires", "CU Boulder cancels courses taught by conservative scholar John Eastman, citing single-digit enrollment", "CU Boulder strips John Eastman of public duties following professor's speech at Trump rally that preceded Capitol riot", "Jan. 6 Committee Refers Former President Trump for Criminal Prosecution", "VIPs expect special treatment. [68][69][70], On January 2, 2021, Eastman joined Trump, the president's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani and others in a conference call with 300 Republican legislators from Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin to brief them on allegations of voter fraud, with the objective of the legislators attempting to decertify their states' election results. [43][44] He is both a member of the board and on the faculty at the Claremont Institute. Eastman asserted this had been reported by The Washington Post days earlier, though the article he appeared to reference did not support his assertion and did not mention antifa. Eastman emailed Giuliani, saying "I've decided that I should be on the pardon list if that is still in the works." [4] He ran unsuccessfully as a Republican for California's 34th congressional district in 1990, and for the office of California Attorney General in 2010. As Trumps legal avenues to overturn his reelection loss grew thinner, Eastman offered up an unconventional strategy based on fringe legal theories: Eastman argued Vice President Mike Pencein his role as Senate presidentcould refuse to count some of Bidens electoral votes during the joint session of Congress on January 6, 2021. Read the notice of the disciplinary charges below. John Eastman, the Trump-allied lawyer who wrote memos urging then-Vice President Mike Pence to overturn the 2020 election results, said in a court filing Monday that federal agents seized his. [103][104], In May 2022, the University of Colorado, where Eastman was a visiting professor, released an email Eastman sent to Pennsylvania legislator Russ Diamond in December 2020. More than 60 courts rejected election fraud claims by Trump and his allies. Mr. McCartney had hired the Eastmans, father and son, to be his representatives and tried to persuade his three bandmates to put them in charge of the groups affairs. Kowalke and NJP lawyer Goriune Dudukgian argued Eastman's lifetime membership in the far-right group made him disloyal and therefore ineligible to hold office in Alaska under the state . The Daily Beast reports that the plaintiffs are seeking to pierce attorney-client privilege under the crime-fraud . 193726), a California licensed attorney. [122]. John Eastman was a little-known but respected conservative lawyer.