Attorney Keith Davidson’s Overlapping Connections with Trump Associate Don Hankey
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Attorney Keith Davidson, pictured in November 2010, has represented
women against Donald Trump, actor Charlie Sheen, and Don Hankey’s
estranged son.
Image Source: Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
When Donald Trump posted his $175 million bond in New York earlier
this month, the owner of the insurer that provided the bond, billionaire
Don Hankey, revealed that although he had never met or spoken with the
former president, he did support Trump politically. In fact, Hankey is
the largest shareholder in Axos Financial, the parent company of the
bank that bailed out Trump in the past.
Keith Davidson’s Testimony and Involvement
Attorney Keith Davidson, who represented Stormy Daniels and Karen
McDougal in their respective cases against Trump, recently took the
stand as a witness in Trump’s criminal trial in New York. In his opening
statement, Matthew Colangelo, a senior counsel to the Manhattan
district attorney, revealed that Davidson, as Daniels’ attorney, had
facilitated the tabloid National Enquirer to pay McDougal
$150,000 for the rights to her story. Colangelo further mentioned that
Davidson has a history of representing clients in high-profile cases
involving celebrities.
Davidson’s involvement with Trump’s alleged hush-money payments to
Daniels and McDougal during the 2016 presidential campaign has raised
questions about his credibility. Both Daniels and McDougal have accused
Davidson of colluding with Trump’s attorney, Michael Cohen, to keep
their stories quiet, with Davidson coordinating the payoff and
negotiation of the nondisclosure agreements.
Controversies and Lawsuits
In 2018, Daniels sued Davidson and Cohen for breaching their attorney
obligations and working against her best interests. Davidson was accused
of tipping off Cohen about her plans to change attorneys and publicly
disclose her relationship with Trump before filing the appropriate
lawsuit. McDougal also leveled similar allegations against Davidson,
claiming he had lied to her about potential payouts and colluded with
representatives for Trump while pretending to advocate on her behalf.
Davidson’s professional conduct has faced scrutiny in the past. The
California bar temporarily suspended his law license in 2010 for failing
to fulfill his obligations to his clients. Additionally, in 2017, Davidson
was embroiled in a lawsuit filed by Hulk Hogan, who accused Davidson,
among others, of attempting to extort him with a sex tape.
Keith Davidson’s Legal Battle with Don Hankey’s Son
Davidson took on a civil lawsuit in 2020 on behalf of three women, who
sued Don Rufus Hankey, the estranged son of Don Hankey and a former
executive with the Hankey Group, for alleged sexual assault, false
imprisonment, and forced trafficked sex acts. The lawsuit accused Rufus
Hankey of spreading sexually transmitted diseases among the plaintiffs.
Don Hankey, when contacted by our publication, distanced himself from
the case and expressed surprise, claiming the events took place years
ago and he had forgotten about them. Notably, Keith Davidson’s involvement
in this case raises the overlapping connections between the two
billionaires, as Davidson represented the women accusing Rufus Hankey.
Legal Proceedings and Conclusion
After years of pretrial proceedings, two of the Jane Does in the Hankey
case agreed to a stipulated judgment with Hankey in December 2022.
However, Jane Doe No. 1 continues to pursue her claims. Davidson, facing
the potential decline in payout, soon filed a motion to withdraw from
the case. A trial is scheduled to begin in May, and Davidson’s absence
in the proceedings raises questions about the case’s trajectory.
