Oh Look, They Arrested Michael Avenatti

Getting arrested right outside of your own disciplinary hearing is the definition of exiting the frying pan into the fire.

Yesterday, 2018 Lawyer of the Year Michael Avenatti appeared before the state bar to discuss the charge that he pilfered $840K from a client’s settlement funds for personal use. Little did he know when he headed out that he wouldn’t be returning home.

During a break, federal prosecutors had a quick chat with the Avenatti team and arrested him for violating the terms of his release. The Daily Beast reports that an Avenatti attorney said that the arrest stemmed from an unrelated criminal matter in Santa Ana but declined to provide details. Quoting a separate Avenatti lawyer, Fox News reports that Avenatti will have a bail hearing at 2 pm Pacific today.

Avenatti, who appeared on Above the Law’s podcast last year, has had a wild couple of years from storming to prominence representing a porn star clashing with Trump to flirting with a White House run himself to facing multiple federal criminal charges to this — and that’s not even counting some of the stuff along the way.

We’ll learn more this afternoon.

Michael Avenatti Arrested by Feds at California State Bar Hearing [Daily Beast]
Avenatti arrested by IRS agents during California Bar Association hearing [Fox News]

Earlier: Michael Avenatti Charged With… A Whole Bunch Of Stuff Out Of Multiple USAOs
Michael Avenatti Charged With… A Whole Bunch MORE Stuff
Above The Law’s 2018 Lawyer Of The Year Contest: The Winner!
The ATL Michael Avenatti Interview

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Joe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news. Joe also serves as a Managing Director at RPN Executive Search.