(Photo by Jay Janner-Pool/Getty Images)
After fighting to get pro se litigants a better break from the federal judiciary — joining Judge Posner and Matthew Dowd in the William Bond case — David Boies is going to experience life as a pro se litigant himself, filing suit on his own behalf against Alan Dershowitz.
Boies will probably not face the same challenges as most pro se litigants.
Until recently, Boies had represented Virginia Giuffre, a victim of Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking ring, in her lawsuit against Dershowitz for defamation. Giuffre claims Epstein made her sleep with Dershowitz while she was a child — Dershowitz publicly claimed she was alternately confused or blackmailing him and then demanded that she file a defamation suit against him for calling her a liar. She filed a defamation suit and Dershowitz started in with the “whoa, I didn’t mean that literally” act.
After roping Boies into the argument by claiming Giuffre’s famous lawyer was running an extortion ring, Dershowitz argued that Boies had to be disqualified as an advocate-witness. Judge Preska indulged this theory and Giuffre secured Chuck Cooper to take over the case. Yesterday, Dershowitz filed a counterclaim citing emotional distress. Cooper responded:
Recycling the same false claims from his increasingly stale playbook, Alan Dershowitz has once again launched an attack on Virginia Giuffre and her lawyers. Lets call his counterclaim what it is: a failed attempt to make something old and tired look new.
Meanwhile, Boies filed a defamation complaint of his own today against Dershowitz because, you know, Dershowitz went to the press repeatedly and claimed that Boies was running an extortion racket. He actually said, “I believe the law firm of Boies Schiller is a RICO” which is… just wow.
Yet somehow, it feels as though Dershowitz is going to be surprised to learn of this suit. Maybe Dershowitz is playing nine-dimensional chess, but it sure seems like every argument he makes creates even worse fallout: Don’t just deny… demand they sue you! Then get sued. Don’t just litigate the case… get Boies kicked off! End up facing Chuck Cooper. Don’t just claim Giuffre’s mistaken… accuse Boies of blackmailing you! Get sued by Boies.
Plus, if you assume what Dershowitz was hoping to avoid in disqualifying Boies was allowing Boies to conduct discovery — he’ll still get to see everything anyway.
But this is setting up a truly epic disqualification motion!
(Check out the full pro se complaint on the next page.)
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