Real Law Review: Manafort Plea Explodes, Attorney Privilege Breached, Pardon?

In a bombshell report, Paual Manafort, Donald Trump’s former campaign manager, has backed out of a plea agreement he made with special counsel, Robert Mueller (or Mueller is ripping up Manafort’s agreement, not clear which). After Manafort was convicted of a raft of crimes in the Eastern District of Virginia (the jury hung on the rest of the charges), he agreed to a plea agreement in the sister case in DC. In exchange for a lighter sentence, Manfort agreed to cooperate fully with the Mueller team in their ongoing investigation.

But now, Mueller is asserting that Manafort has not cooperated and has repeatedly lied to prosecutors. Manafort breached the plea agreement and now that agreement has exploded. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

Today we are going to discuss:

1. What are the immediate repercussions of Manafort backing out of his plea agreement. (Hint: Manafort is going to jail for a long time)

2. What does it mean that Manafort’s lawyers secretly communicated with the Trump attorneys while Manafort cooperated with Mueller? Does that constitute disclosure of attorney/client information? Are Manafort’s communications exposed? Are Trump’s communications exposed? THIS IS INCREDIBLE.

3. Many have argued that Manafort’s behavior can only be explained by his seeking a presidential pardon? Would that help him?

Welcome to Real Law Review by LegalEagle; a new series on this channel where I try to tackle the most important legal issues of the day. If you have suggestion for the next topic leave your comment below.

And if you disagree, be sure to leave your comment in the form of an OBJECTION!

Remember to make your comments Stella-appropriate. Stella is the LegalBeagle and she wields the gavel of justice. DO NOT MESS WITH STELLA.

All clips used for fair use commentary, criticism, and educational purposes. See Hosseinzadeh v. Klein, 276 F.Supp.3d 34 (S.D.N.Y. 2017); Equals Three, LLC v. Jukin Media, Inc., 139 F. Supp. 3d 1094 (C.D. Cal. 2015).

Typical legal disclaimer from a lawyer (occupational hazard): This is not legal advice, nor can I give you legal advice. Sorry! Everything here is for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. You should contact your attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue or problem. Nothing here should be construed to form an attorney client relationship. Also, some of the links in this post may be affiliate links, meaning, at no cost to you, I will earn a small commission if you click through and make a purchase. But if you click, it really helps me make more of these videos!

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[poizunman]

Having heard Mr. Stone say in other videos how there are virtually never any bombshells, hearing him say that this is a bombshell demonstrates how bad Paul Manafort screwed up.

[SuperPukebucket]

I love the fact that you don't reveal your political affiliation. You literally just explain the facts as they exist and the legal implications of those facts. Still nifty people are getting mad at you about it.

[XxxTheFireEmblemxxX]

I’m sure this comment section will be filled with nuanced, textured, well-researched arguments from all sides.

[spidersVise]

I don't usually enjoy ads, but "Super Paul and the Manafortress" sounds like a great idea!

[jonnyclueless]

I really hope you do more videos like this. Not because of the politics, but because it's really helpful to us non-lawyers in understanding what is going on better with some of these current legal events.

[garywordman]

"He could learn a new skill - BY USING SKILLSHARE!"
That was great.
Keep up the good work.

[BOONERBOYO]

Maybe if he had Charlie Kelly, bird lawyer, on his side he would be off scot-free

[TheSantosLHalper]

Gigantic fan. Great work! I'm no lawyer, but I pay attention and I often find myself yelling at the television over what are common-sense legal mistakes (missteps). Good on you, sir!

[NetAndyCz]

Still waiting for Legally Blonde review:)

[emmaleigh]

"The government has left the chat"
LOL

[natsune]

I love the way he slides in the advertisement in,

[calebharper]

Everyone bow down to the GREATEST SPONSOR SEGUE IN YOUTUBE HISTORY.

[SRFriso]

John Oliver calling this whole debacle Stupid Watergate feels more and more relevant as time goes by. Now, even tertiary parties like Manafort's lawyers turn out to be bad at everything XD.

[QuickshotGaming]

Damn it the sponsor transition got me. I was all, "What? He'll put it to good time?"

[rasmustof]

OBJECTION!! you look too good in that suit, it should be a crime

[supertell]

Going to jail? Try Skillshare while you're there.

[AnonnymouZ]

It’s times like this that channels like yours shine even more. But I’ve been following for a while, and now it’s a time to subscribe. Thanks for your explanations and for making it entertaining as well.

[trinitarian]

I appreciate these Real Law Review segments, and I think you are the only one doing these analyses this well; thank you for your work.

[stevecooper]

That might be the best segue into an ad I've ever heard

[baumulrich]

wow! thank you for spelling it out for us! I had no idea that a plea nullifies the joint defence agreement. This is hilarious how terrible those people are at hiding their crimes. LOCK THEM UP!