Trump's new hush money argument has a Sam Bankman-Fried 'problem': analyst

Former President Donald Trump's "weird" new filing in his New York City hush money case has a big problem at the heart of its argument, according to MSNBC legal analyst Lisa Rubin: it misrepresents rulings from the trial of convicted crypto fraudster Sam Bankman-Fried.

Trump Monday filed notice to New York City judge Juan Merchan — overseeing Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's falsifying business records case — that he plans to present a quasi advice-of-counsel defense, court records show.

"The problem?" writes Rubin. "The very first case he cites for the proposition that this 'informal' or advice-of-counsel lite evidence and argument is cool -- the Sam Bankman-Fried case overseen by Judge Lew Kaplan of the E. Jean Carroll trials -- is not accurately represented."

Rubin contends Bankman-Fried's criminal team also tried to show FTX lawyers' involvement in certain decisions proved the company founder's good faith and lack of criminal intent.

But Kaplan considered the argument and found some serious concerns, according to Rubin.

Specifically, Kaplan took umbrage with vague evidence about lawyers' participation in business decisions, saying it could prejudice the jury against the prosecutors.

""The risk of confusion and unfair prejudice to the government," Kaplan wrote, according to Rubin, "is palpable."

Ultimately, Kaplan barred Bankman-Fried's lawyers from discussing his lawyers involvement during their opening statements and from offering evidence or testimony without prior notice.

"Bankman-Fried won one such fight but lost another about the lawyers' involvement in drafting certain legal documents," Rubin notes, "because it would "falsely imply...the lawyers, with full knowledge of the facts, blessed what the defendant’s alleged to have done."

Trump's Monday filing arrives about two weeks before he is slated to go to court on March 25.

Trump has pleaded not guilty to charges that he manipulated financial records to hide hush money payments paid to adult film star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

This is one of four criminal court cases Trump faces.