Alina Habba, an attorney associated with Donald Trump, found herself excluded from a settlement agreement related to a lawsuit involving Trump’s Bedminster golf club. This exclusion stemmed from claims by a former employee that Habba had deceived her into remaining silent about alleged s*exual harassment.
Alice Bianco, a former waitress at Trump’s golf club, was the center of this legal matter. The club agreed to a settlement of $82,500 to resolve Bianco’s allegations. Interestingly, Bianco’s lawyer took specific steps to ensure that the settlement did not prevent Bianco from pursuing separate legal actions against Habba.
This decision was highlighted in the settlement document, which explicitly stated that Alina Habba was not protected by the terms of the release. The reason behind Bianco’s decision to exclude Habba from the settlement’s protective clauses appears to stem from a sense of betrayal. Bianco accused Habba of falsely presenting herself as a supportive confidant and legal advisor regarding Bianco’s claims of being s*exually harassed by a supervisor at the club, reported The Daily Beast.
Allegedly, Habba then covertly convinced Bianco to accept what was described as an “illegal” payment to keep silent about the harassment. The process of negotiating this agreement was reportedly rushed, a strategy that seemingly served to benefit Habba’s standing with Donald Trump, positioning her within his inner circle. Bianco’s accusations suggest that Habba’s involvement in securing the hush-money agreement was not only for the immediate benefit of mitigating the harassment claim but also as a means of advancing her own career within Trump’s legal team.
Indeed, Habba’s role within Trump’s legal affairs expanded significantly following the arrangement of the hush-money agreement in August 2021. She soon took on the role of Trump’s lead attorney in a high-profile s*exual assault defamation lawsuit filed by Summer Zervos, a former contestant on “The Apprentice.” Although the Zervos case was eventually dropped, Habba has continued to represent Trump in various legal matters, including a significant civil fraud case in New York. In this case, Trump faced a substantial penalty of $454 million.
As part of the settlement reached on March 4, Bianco was allowed to retain a $15,000 payment she had received as part of the agreement to remain silent about the alleged harassment. Meanwhile, Bianco’s attorney received $82,500 for their efforts in litigating the case. However, the voiding of the non-disclosure agreement poses serious implications for Habba, threatening her professional standing and financial security. This development underscores the complexities and personal dynamics at play within legal disputes involving high-profile figures and their associates.
“We got everything we asked for,” said Bianco’s attorney Nancy Erika Smith. “We asked to void the agreement, that she not pay back. I didn’t want her to pay me a dime. So we got that, and she still has the right to sue Alina Habba for fraud, and she has the right to sue the club for s*exual harassment.”
