Todd Blanche and Chris Kise, two high-powered attorneys from New York and Florida, respectively, appeared alongside former President Donald Trump for his arraignment at a federal courthouse in Florida on Tuesday.
Blanche and Kise have been part of Trump’s legal defense for some time as the former president battles state and federal indictments and investigations. After his federal indictment last week, Trump reshuffled his legal team. Two of his attorneys, Jim Trusty and John Rowley, resigned, and Blanche took the lead on the case with Kise assisting.
Trump brought Blanche on in early April. Blanche resigned as a partner at the elite law firm Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, the oldest firm in New York City, to take Trump’s case.
“I have been asked to represent Trump in the recently charged DA case, and after much thought/consideration, I have decided it is the best thing for me to do and an opportunity I should not pass up,” he said in a statement at the time.
Blanche is a former federal prosecutor and a veteran defender in white-collar crime cases. As a federal prosecutor, Blanche served as Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York for nine years, earning accolades from the Department of Justice for his work.
