Michael Avenatti. Photo: David Handschuh/ALM

Lawyers for Michael Avenatti asked a Manhattan federal judge to exclude evidence of his  finances from an upcoming criminal trial on charges that the embattled attorney tried to extort Nike Inc. for about $25 million.

In a motion filed late Monday, Avenatti's defense team said that federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York wanted to use Avenatti's debts—on a Ferrari, a Porsche and an airplane—to establish his motive in carrying out the alleged scheme.

The attorneys argued that the evidence was irrelevant to the government's case, and would only serve to "distract the jury" at trial.

Also among the evidence they sought to exclude was a $5 million personal judgment against Avenatti, as well as a loan he had taken from fellow attorney Mark Geragos, who was identified as a co-conspirator but was not charged in the case.

"The probative value of Mr. Avenatti's financial spending prior to the alleged conduct and his financial condition at the time of that conduct, is far outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice," attorneys Scott A. Srebnick and Jose M. Quinon wrote in the 11-page filing.

Prosecutors have alleged in a revised indictment that Avenatti, who rose to prominence representing adult film star Stormy Daniels in a failed lawsuit against President Donald Trump, tried to shake down the sports apparel giant while representing a youth basketball coach who claimed to have damaging information about the company.

According to the indictment, Avenatti threatened to go public with the allegations unless Nike agreed to pay $25 million and hire Avenatti and Geragos to conduct an internal investigation. Prosecutors last month dropped conspiracy charges against Avenatti but added one count of honest services wire fraud related to his representation of coach Gary Franklin.

Avenatti claims he was merely doing his job as an advocate for his client, and has said he plans to subpoena Nike over its payment practices. Trial in the case is set to begin Jan. 21.

Avenatti's attorneys said they plan to focus their case on whether Franklin had a legitimate claim against Nike, claiming that he was well within his rights as an attorney to pursue a resolution.

"The evidence of luxury items and Mr. Avenatti's financial condition will serve no purpose other than to distract the jury from the central issues in the case. It will not bear on whether Mr. Avenatti's conduct was wrongful under the law," Srebnick wrote on Monday. "Yet, based on the volume and type of discovery that has been provided, it certainly seems as though the government intends to make Mr. Avenatti's financial condition a substantial feature of the trial."

Avenatti is facing separate indictments in California and New York for allegedly stealing settlements and other funds from former clients, including Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford.

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