Harvey Weinstein has enlisted the legal representation of attorneys Luigi Mangione and Sean “Diddy” Combs’ legal team for his upcoming third New York rape trial, reorganizing his legal counsel following his decision not to resolve the case through a guilty plea.
Jacob Kaplan, Marc Agnifilo, and Teny Geragos, the new legal team for Weinstein, were officially announced in court documents on Tuesday, taking over from his previous long-time attorney, Arthur Aidala, who will now focus on Weinstein’s appeals and ongoing civil matters.
Kaplan, a member of Weinstein’s original defense team in 2018, is expected to play a prominent role in the upcoming trial, which centers on allegations that Weinstein raped hairstylist and actress Jessica Mann in a Manhattan hotel in 2013.
Weinstein, during a hearing in January, maintained his innocence, stating that he had never assaulted anyone and expressing his emotional turmoil after spending nearly six years in custody.
The trial, initially scheduled for March 3, has been postponed with a rescheduled date pending. Weinstein is set to appear in court on March 4 for a status update. The legal publication Law360 first reported the change in legal representation.
Kaplan and Agnifilo are also currently representing Mangione in separate state and federal cases related to the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Their legal efforts in those cases have resulted in the dismissal of terrorism charges in the state trial and the exclusion of the death penalty in the federal trial.
Agnifilo and Geragos, who previously defended Combs in a case involving sex trafficking and racketeering charges, are now part of the legal team representing the Alexander brothers in a sex trafficking trial in Manhattan federal court.
Weinstein’s spokesperson, Juda Engelmayer, stated that Weinstein believes a fresh perspective and strategic approach are essential after two previous trials on the matter.
In a complex verdict last June, Weinstein was found guilty of one charge involving forced oral sex on Miriam Haley, acquitted of another charge, and faced a hung jury on the rape allegation involving Mann.
The retrial was ordered by New York’s highest court after an appeal, with Judge Curtis Farber overseeing the upcoming trial and dismissing claims of biased jury deliberations during the last trial.
Weinstein and Aidala have mutually agreed to the change in legal representation, with Aidala expressing continued commitment to advocating for Weinstein in the appellate courts, aiming to overturn his significant conviction.
The upcoming trial’s timing may be influenced by the schedules of Kaplan, Agnifilo, and Geragos, who are involved in other high-profile cases, including Mangione’s state trial starting in June.
Weinstein, currently serving time for a prior conviction and facing a potential maximum sentence of 25 years for the criminal sex act charge, continues to be embroiled in legal battles, including an appeal in a separate California case.
