Ex-Trump election lawyer John Eastman disbarred in California

By Katelyn Polantz, CNN

(CNN) — More than five years after he pushed a plan to help Donald Trump cling to power after losing the 2020 election, the president’s former election lawyer John Eastman has lost his license to practice law in the state of California.

Eastman devised a multi-step plan for then-Vice President Mike Pence to overturn the election and was part of the effort to appoint fake electors in several states.

The disbarment, ordered Wednesday by the California Supreme Court, concludes years of attorney discipline proceedings for Eastman. He and his representatives didn’t immediately respond to CNN’s requests for comment Wednesday night.

Eastman’s law license was previously revoked in California after a judge in the state recommended his disbarment two years ago.

“Eastman failed to uphold his primary duty of honesty and breached his ethical obligations by presenting falsehoods to bolster his legal arguments,” the previous judge wrote.

Eastman is among a small group of attorneys to face professional consequences for propelling false theories of election fraud on Trump’s behalf.

“His unethical actions have had real, lasting consequences for our democracy, and we applaud the California Supreme Court’s decision to disbar him,” Christine P. Sun, of the States United Democracy Center said in a statement Wednesday. The group had asked years ago for California’s attorney discipline officials to investigate Eastman’s actions in 2020.

“This decision is part of a broader reckoning for those who seek to undermine the rule of law in this country,” Sun said. “While Trump tries to consolidate power, the states and courts continue to successfully check executive overreach and the unlawful actions of his administration.”

In addition to having his name “stricken from the roll of attorneys,” as the court ordered, Eastman also faces a $5,000 sanction.

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