As the beginning date of the trial of FTX co-founder Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried approaches, new courtroom filings point out that SBF may pay his professional witnesses greater than $1,000 an hour ought to they testify on his behalf.
SBF could name seven professional witnesses to testify at his fraud trial, which is at the moment scheduled for Oct. 2, 2023. The proposed professional witnesses embrace Lawrence Akka, Thomas Bishop, Brian Kim, Joseph Pimbley, Bradley Smith, Peter Vinella and Andrew Di Wu.
A number of the witnesses, equivalent to former Federal Election Fee Chairperson Bradley Smith, will cost SBF’s authorized crew $1,200 an hour to testify about points equivalent to the US’ marketing campaign finance legal guidelines and straw donors, in keeping with a courtroom submitting on Aug. 28.
“I’ve no monetary curiosity within the consequence of this case. I’m being compensated for my time and companies on an hourly foundation on the billing price of $1,200 per hour,” Smith mentioned within the submitting. The doc added:
“My compensation on this case shouldn’t be in any manner contingent or primarily based on the opinions introduced herein or on the end result of those authorized proceedings.”
Different professional witnesses, together with Akka and Pimbley, may cost 800 British kilos ($1,000) and $720 per hour, respectively, ought to they testify, in accordance to the courtroom filings. Different hourly charges for SBF’s potential professional witnesses vary between $400 and $650.
However, Peter Easton, an accounting professor on the College of Notre Dame, who’s a proposed witness for the prosecution, will cost $1,175 per hour, the courtroom information exhibits.
The above-mentioned courtroom filings got here as a part of a movement by the U.S. Division of Justice (DOJ) to ban all seven professional witnesses from testifying for SBF in courtroom.
The DOJ argued that Bankman-Fried’s proposed consultants and their accompanying disclosures “undergo from an array of deficiencies” and fail to offer a foundation for the opinions.
Associated: DOJ calls SBF’s fraud allegation protection ‘irrelevant,’ requests more information
“The place the defendant does disclose the professional’s opinions, the opinions are inappropriate topics for professional testimony, lack a dependable methodology or foundation in details and information, or are irrelevant, unfairly prejudicial, and complicated to the jury,” the authority wrote.
The information comes amid the final deadline for SBF to request a postponement of the trial. If the request is filed by Sept. 1 and accepted, SBF’s trial will probably be moved to March 11, 2024.
Bankman-Fried faces 12 felony prices, which will probably be unfold throughout two trials scheduled to start on Oct. 2, 2023, and March 11, 2024. He has pleaded not responsible to all counts.
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