Habba’s Troubles Mount as $50 Million Contract Implodes and Disbarment Threat Looms

Troubles — including an ethics probe — are mounting for President Trump’s erstwhile lawyer, Alina Hamma, after the collapse of a $50 million contract that she inked with a family company helmed by a Venezuelan billionaire.The company, Concord Partners, cited Ms. Habba’s “failure to perform duties” in terminating the arrangement, which was set to pay her $10 million a year for four years, along with a range of bonuses and incentives. Ms. Habba, the former acting United States attorney for New Jersey, will retain the $6.5 million already paid to her as well as her $8 million signing bonus.Ms. Habba was fired on November 4, days after Mr. Trump declared that the contract was “totally obnoxious and outrageous.” Concord was incorporated in Florida last year by the daughter of billionaire banker Julio Herrera Velutini, Isabela Herrera Velutini. Mr. Herrera was facing felony bribery charges before receiving a “full and unconditional” pardon from Mr. Trump on January 15. Ms. Habba’s contract began on January 1.Mr. Trump told reporters at his Halloween party at Mar-a-Lago that “I thought it was terrible. I told her, and I said, ‘I don’t want her paid.’ I thought we had somebody speak to the people that did it, and she used her relationship to do that. And it was far too much.” He also urged her to direct the funds toward his presidential library, adding that “it’s unacceptable what she did.”In terminating Ms. Habba’s contract, the New York Times reports, the Herrera Velutinis, who descend from an aristocratic clan dating to 14th-century Spain, cited her recent marriage to a Turkish billionaire 14 years her junior, Turhan Mildon.Ms. Habba’s troubles extend well beyond the terminated contract. On Tuesday, the Office of Attorney Ethics in New Jersey recommended that she face discipline for her role in settling a sexual harassment complaint brought years ago by a waitress at Mr. Trump’s golf club at Bedminster. The proceedings could ultimately result in disbarment, though Ms. Habba’s legal team declares that “the claims are narrow, and we will work together to reach a fair and proportionate result.”Tuesday’s filing from the Office of Attorney Ethics recounts how a club waitress, Alice Bianco, accused a manager at Bedminster of proposing “quid pro quo sex in exchange for continued employment.” Ms. Habba befriended Ms. Bianco, who eventually dropped her lawyer and accepted a $15,000 settlement. The ethics office concluded that the terms were “favorable to the golf club and unfavorable to Bianco.”Ms. Bianco eventually retained a second lawyer, Nancy Erika Smith, who sued Ms. Habba and Bedminster over the handling of her client’s case. That lawsuit resulted in a $400,000 settlement. Ms. Smith declared in a statement that Ms. Habba is “unethical and she should be disbarred. She used this 21-year-old victim of sexual assault. It’s hard to think of a more severe ethical violation.”Ms. Habba forged a connection with Mr. Trump by representing him in several civil suits brought against him. These included both cases brought by the advice columnist E. Jean Carroll, which resulted in $88.3 million in damages against Mr. Trump, of which $5 million has already been paid. She also represented Mr. Trump in the fraud case brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James.That case resulted in Judge Arthur Engoron imposing a judgment of some $500 million for what he called “persistent fraud.” The penalty was eventually overturned by an appellate court, which found that it violated the Constitution’s prohibition on “excessive fines.” Ms. Habba also served on Mr. Trump’s legal team for his $72 million lawsuit against Secretary Hillary Clinton. That case was dismissed, and Mr. Trump and Ms. Habba were fined $1 million for advancing “frivolous” claims. The appeal is before the Supreme Court.That track record earned Ms. Habba the nod as interim United States attorney for New Jersey, briefly making her the state’s most powerful prosecutor. In that role, she charged Newark Mayor Ras Baraka and Congresswoman LaMonica McIver with trespassing and other crimes following a protest at an ICE facility. The charges against Mr. Baraka were dropped, but the case against Ms. McIver has survived multiple motions to dismiss, including a challenge based on the Constitution’s Speech or Debate Clause.Ms. Habba stepped down as United States attorney in December 2025 after the Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that she had been serving in the position unlawfully following her appointment by Attorney General Pam Bondi. She was immediately appointed a senior adviser to the attorney general, but left that position earlier this year.

Habba’s Troubles Mount as $50 Million Contract Implodes and Disbarment Threat Looms

Habba’s Troubles Mount as $50 Million Contract Implodes and Disbarment Threat Looms

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