Digital Currency Group has tapped former Donald Trump impeachment lawyer Barry Berke to fight a lawsuit filed by the New York Attorney General (NYAG). Berke was involved in both Trump impeachment trials.
Berke was appointed two weeks after NYAG Letitia James sued DCG, its subsidiary Genesis, and Gemini exchange for an alleged $1.1 billion fraud. DCG has denied the allegations and vowed to contest them.
Ex-Trump DCG Lawyer Berke’s Resume
According to a source from the US legal ranking firm, Chambers USA, Berke is a skilled defense lawyer who excels at protecting his clients and helping them manage a crisis. In the second Trump impeachment, he built an investigative framework that saw Trump impeached for alleged collusion with Ukraine to investigate former vice-president Joe Biden.
Berke also defended former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio against federal and local charges in 2017. He recently secured the dismissal of bribery and fraud charges against former New York Lieutenant Governor Brian Benjamin.
Berke is the second high-profile DCG hire after its digital asset subsidiary Grayscale Investments (Grayscale) hired ex-Obama lawyer Donald B. Verrilli Jr. Verrilli successfully argued that the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s rejection of Grayscale’s Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) application was arbitrary and capricious.
Read more: Who Is Barry Silbert, Founder of Digital Currency Group (DCG)?
Berke Flair Could Unsettle NYAG Case
The judge in the Grayscale case scolded the SEC for using poor legal reasoning in denying the fund’s ETF application. Similarly, If the NYAG doesn’t prepare well, Berke’s novel questioning methods could dismantle the case within days.
In 2011, Berke defended a former Deutsche Bank broker against charges of marketing fraudulent tax shelters. Berke engaged state witnesses in role-playing-type questioning over four days to successfully undermine the prosecution’s case.
Read more: How to Reduce Your Crypto Tax Liability: A Comprehensive Guide
The prosecution successfully convicted those Berke did not represent. According to Paul H. Schoeman, who worked with Berke on the case,
“He is really creative and inventive in his thinking, and he combines that with incredible preparation and hard work. It’s not just a good idea; it’s well executed.”
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