Donald Trump Jr. Sent Subpoena to Testify in Upcoming Michael Cohen Trial: Lawyer

Donald Trump Jr. has been sent a subpoena seeking his testimony in an upcoming civil trial over Michael Cohen's claim that the Trump Organization failed to pay his legal fees when he started cooperating with investigators, a lawyer for Cohen told The Messenger. 

A New York State Supreme Court Justice ruled at a final pretrial hearing Friday that Cohen should be allowed to call the former president’s son at the trial slated for July 24 — but it’s unclear if former President Trump's oldest son will try to fight the summons. 

“We have not received a response,” Cohen’s attorney, Hunter Winstead, told The Messenger. 

Attorneys for the Trump Organization did not immediately return a request for comment.  

Cohen’s lawsuit, originally filed in 2019, seeks to recoup unpaid legal fees he incurred in multiple investigations during his time at the Trump Organization, including probes by Congress and in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election. 

The original suit sought $1.9 million in unpaid fees, some of which no longer apply to Cohen’s claim. 

At the hearing Friday, Winstead argued Donald Trump Jr. would need to testify for a number of reasons. 

Firstly, Trump Jr. was afforded legal coverage through the Trump Organization – in an agreement known as indemnification — for some of the same matters Cohen claims he’s entitled to reimbursements for, Cohen's attorney argued. 

Trump Jr. was also one of a small number of people who approved legal expenditures at the Trump Organization, Winstead said. 

Justice Joel Cohen, who will oversee the trial, agreed with Winstead’s argument at the hearing. 

"He’s clearly a fact witness," Justice Cohen said. "If you can get him here, there’s no way I would preclude you from calling him as a witness."

Former President Trump was also included on a proposed witness list in the case, but both parties agreed to drop him as a potential witness. 

At the hearing Friday, Trump Organization attorney Michael Farina argued testimony from both the Trumps would be “irrelevant” to the case. 

Farina said it is “borderline harassment” that they were included on the proposed list.