#Trump voluntarily dismisses lawsuit against Michael Cohen

Former President Trump filed to voluntarily dismiss his lawsuit against Michael Cohen on Thursday evening, court documents show.

The sudden twist comes just days before Trump was set to sit for a deposition in the case.

Trump sued Cohen, his longtime attorney and fixer, in April for $500 million over accusations that Cohen maliciously worked to acquire attention and wealth at Trump’s expense, in particular taking aim at his book, podcast and many media appearances.

“Trump didn’t want no smoke,” Benjamin Brodsky, Cohen’s attorney, told The Hill.

The lawsuit came just days after Trump was indicted in New York on 34 criminal counts over reimbursements he made to Cohen for a 2016 hush money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels. Trump pleaded not guilty.

Cohen is expected to be a key witness in the prosecutors’ case, which is set to go to trial in late March. Trump this week filed a motion to dismiss the charges, and he also faces three other criminal indictments.

Trump in the lawsuit claimed Cohen breached his contract, among other claims, alleging he has regularly revealed information that was deemed confidential by the nature of their attorney-client relationship, with Trump further claiming that significant portions of Cohen’s claims were false.

Cohen has turned against his former boss, regularly attacking him on the airwaves and social media.

Though the lawsuit did not mention Trump’s New York indictment directly, the claims include Cohen’s statements about the hush payment arrangement at the center of Trump’s case. 

Cohen is also a potential witness in Trump’s ongoing New York civil fraud trial.

Trump was scheduled to sit for a deposition in his lawsuit against Cohen on Monday. It was originally slated for this week but was delayed so Trump could travel to Manhattan for the fraud trial.

The Hill has reached out to Trump’s attorney for comment.

Cohen in July had settled for an undisclosed amount in his lawsuit with the Trump Organization over accusations that they owed Cohen $1.3 million in legal fees.