Adult film star Stormy Daniels was in the news quite a bit this week, especially on Tuesday, as former President Donald Trump was formally processed and arraigned in a Manhattan courthouse on 34 charges related to allegedly improper hush money payments to Daniels and another woman during the 2016 presidential campaign.
But, in something of a strange twist of fate, Tuesday also put Daniels' name — legally Stephanie Clifford — in the news when the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against Daniels and ordered her to reimburse Trump for $121,972.56 worth of legal fees.
The 9th Circuit's order explains:
Under the Texas Citizens Participation Act (TCPA), Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 27.009(a)(1), attorneys' fees in the amount of $121,972.56 are awarded in favor of appellee Donald J. Trump and against appellant Stephanie Clifford.
The legal fees owed to Trump were, according to the court filing, incurred by lawyers at Harder LLP and Dhillon Law Group in defense of the former president against unsuccessful litigation brought by Stormy Daniels.
RNC Committeewoman and freedom-loving lawyer Harmeet Dhillon — part of President Trump's cadre of legal defenders — celebrated the 9th Circuit's decision and noted that her law firm had now secured more than half a million dollars in such awards for Trump in the "meritless litigation initiated by Stormy Daniels."
Congratulations to President Trump on this final attorney fee victory in his favor this morning. Collectively, our firm obtained over $600,000 in attorney fee awards in his favor in the meritless litigation initiated by Stormy Daniels. https://t.co/ld7SVvZOp6 pic.twitter.com/1b5P3flxFb
— Harmeet K. Dhillon (@pnjaban) April 4, 2023
Daniels was previously ordered to pay some $500,000 in legal fees to Trump after her case against the former president went down in flames, much like the career of Daniels' former attorney Michael Avenatti.
Ironically, the legal fees Daniels has been ordered to pay Trump are far more than the allegedly improper hush money payment Daniels received in 2016.