Top Trump attorney recused himself from handling Mar-a-Lago case

By Katelyn Polantz, Kaitlan Collins and Kristen Holmes, CNN

Attorney Evan Corcoran recused himself from representing former President Donald Trump in the special counsel investigation related to the Mar-a-Lago documents given that he testified for investigators, two sources familiar with the matter told CNN.

Corcoran’s exit, which was first reported by The Washington Post, was an expected development after special counsel Jack Smith’s office forced him to testify without the shield of attorney-client privilege in front of the grand jury and prosecutors accused Trump of using his attorney to advance a crime.

Despite recusing himself from the Mar-a-Lago probe weeks ago, Corcoran continues to represent Trump on other matters, including the January 6, 2021, investigation. He appeared in court on behalf of the former president for sealed proceedings related to that part of Smith’s probe just days after his testimony in the Mar-a-Lago documents case.

Corcoran could still resume representing Trump in the documents case now that he has testified.

It’s not known how valuable the evidence and testimony he provided to the grand jury will be for prosecutors. He testified twice to the grand jury and turned over documents.

Corcoran’s own defense attorney declined to comment. Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said Saturday, “These unnamed sources have no idea what’s actually going on and are peddling disinformation.”

Corcoran had a window into many of the moments in which Trump and his team were responding to the federal government’s efforts to get classified documents back.

He first appeared before the grand jury in January but refused to answer questions that would have divulged his advice to Trump and their conversations, citing attorney-client privilege, a source previously told CNN. Prosecutors were then prompted to take the unusual step of fighting in court to force him to respond, and a federal court ruled prior to his reappearance in front of the grand jury in March that he could not withhold information any longer about communications he’d had with Trump leading up to the search.

Prosecutors sought to ask Corcoran about his direct interactions with Trump regarding a May 2022 subpoena for all classified records in the former president’s possession, the subsequent search for classified records, and about conversations they’d had when the Trump Organization received a separate subpoena for surveillance video of the club.

Corcoran drafted a statement in June that claimed Trump’s team had done a diligent search for boxes and were handing over classified records they found in response to the May subpoena. Then, months later, the FBI found hundreds more pages with classified markings in its search of Mar-a-Lago, a pivotal development in the records mishandling and obstruction of justice probe.

In recent weeks, the grand jury activity, including Corcoran’s forced testimony, has made clear that prosecutors are nailing down evidence from scores of sources that could be used in a case against Trump.

The former president has not been charged with any federal crime.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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CNN’s Kaanita Iyer, Evan Perez, and Sara Murray contributed to this report.