Trump campaign ordered to fork over $350,000 for trying to enforce 'unenforceable' NDA
![Donald Trump.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/744sbHZmeuwTCTkad97vRh-415-80.jpg)
The campaign organization for former President Donald Trump was recently ordered to hand over more than $350,000 in legal fees and expenses after attempting to enforce an "unenforceable" nondisclosure agreement against an ex-staffer, BuzzFeed News reports Friday.
An arbitrator in the nonpublic arbitration case found that though Alva Johnson's — the ex-staffer — attempt to sue Trump failed, his campaign was unable to "invoke a legally unsound nondisclosure agreement," BuzzFeed News writes. Johnson had alleged the former president once tried to forcibly kiss her, and also made claims of pay discrimination.
The March 10 order requiring the Trump campaign to pay Johnson was made public this week.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516-320-80.jpg)
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The former president has often used arbitration to try and keep unseemly claims out of the limelight, rather than allow an issue to go to court and risk public hearings and documents, BuzzFeed News explains. During his campaign in 2016, many staffers were directed to sign NDAs "that broadly barred them from sharing information about the campaign or saying negative things about Trump, his family, and his businesses."
But in two previous cases involving ex-staffers and the NDAs, "a judge and an arbitrator concluded that key sections of that agreement were too vague and ill-defined to be constitutionally enforceable," per BuzzFeed News. In Johnson's case, the arbitrator found the previous rulings to be persuasive enough and dismissed the campaign's complaint against her.
Her lawyers then requested that, as the winning party, the Trump campaign pay their legal bills. The arbitrator, Victori Bianchini, agreed and ordered Team Trump to pay $303,285, as well as the costs of the arbitration itself, which amounted to about $50,000. Read more at BuzzFeed News.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
-
Why is China stockpiling resources?
The Explainer The superpower has been amassing huge reserves of commodities at great cost despite its economic downturn
By Richard Windsor, The Week UK Published
-
Paraguay's dangerous dalliance with cryptocurrency
Under The Radar Overheating Paraguayans are pushing back over power outages caused by illegal miners
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
The Week contest: Tattoo prediction
Puzzles and Quizzes
By The Week US Published
-
Why is China stockpiling resources?
The Explainer The superpower has been amassing huge reserves of commodities at great cost despite its economic downturn
By Richard Windsor, The Week UK Published
-
The GOP is Donald Trump Jr.'s party now
In The Spotlight The former president's gun-loving, live-streaming adult son has emerged as more than just his father's namesake — he's become a Republican powerhouse of his own
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
For God and country: is religion in politics making a comeback?
Talking Point There are many MPs of faith in the new Labour government despite it being the most openly secular House of Commons in history
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
The attack on Donald Trump
Opinion We've seen this kind of shooter before
By Susan Caskie Published
-
74 things Donald Trump has said about women
Feature The former president has a long history of controversial remarks about the opposite sex
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
DHS opens review of Trump assassination attempt
Speed Read An independent panel will investigate the Secret Service's handling of the shooting
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Can Kamala Harris beat Trump?
Today's Big Question Some senior Democrats are unsure the vice-president can win in November even as party closes ranks behind her
By The Week UK Published
-
Iran: does Masoud Pezeshkian's election mark a turning point?
Talking Point New president is seen as a progressive but much will depend on how the US reacts
By The Week UK Published