Lawrence Joseph, the attorney representing former Donald Trump lawyer Sidney Powell in defamation cases, is now under disciplinary scrutiny in Washington, D.C. The disciplinary charges stem from a lawsuit and appeals challenging the 2020 U.S. presidential election results, where Joseph allegedly made false claims.
Allegations Against Lawrence Joseph
The D.C. Bar’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel asserts that Joseph, in a lawsuit filed on December 27, 2020, in Tyler, Texas, federal court, falsely claimed that a provision of the Electoral Count Act was unconstitutional. This legal move adds another layer of complexity to Joseph’s already challenging role as Powell’s representative in high-stakes defamation suits.
Defamation Lawsuits and Joseph’s Response
Joseph is defending Powell against defamation lawsuits filed by Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic, both prominent voting companies. Powell has been accused of making debunked claims that the 2020 election was rigged against Trump. Despite the legal challenges, Powell maintains that her statements were not defamatory.
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Joseph, facing disciplinary charges, has yet to respond to the Washington ethics complaint filed on January 9, as of the latest update released on Thursday. The head of the D.C. Bar Disciplinary Counsel Office, Hamilton Fox III, declined to comment on the matter.
Unsubstantiated Claims in Texas Lawsuit
In the Texas lawsuit, Joseph contended that an alternate Republican slate of electors in Arizona had convened and cast votes for Trump, allegedly with the knowledge and permission of the state legislature. However, the Office of Disciplinary Counsel claims that Joseph knowingly made false claims without any factual basis. Joseph allegedly made similar unfounded assertions regarding competing slates of electors in Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
Failed Appeals and Dismissed Lawsuit
During failed appeals to the 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court, Joseph persisted in his claims. The lawsuit, dismissed by U.S. District Judge Jeremy Kernodle just five days after filing, had asserted the existence of competing electors in critical states. This legal strategy was part of the broader effort by Trump and his allies to challenge the election results by pressuring Republican-controlled legislatures in battleground states.
Trump’s Efforts to Overturn the Election
Trump and his allies aimed to overturn his defeat to Democrat Joe Biden by persuading Republican-controlled legislatures to name Trump-friendly electors or refuse to name any electors despite Biden winning the popular vote. The alternate electors’ ballots cast on December 14, 2020, had no legal standing, yet they were used unsuccessfully to pressure then-Vice President Mike Pence during Congress’s January 6, 2021, session to certify the election outcome.
Joseph’s Assertion Regarding Pence’s Authority
Joseph’s Texas lawsuit argued that Vice President Mike Pence had “exclusive authority and sole discretion in determining which electoral votes to count for a given state.” This legal stance further intensified the controversial attempts to challenge the legitimacy of the electoral process.
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