Donald Trump seeks dismissal of Stormy Daniels’ lawsuit over hush money agreement

U.S. President Donald Trump has asked a federal judge to dismiss adult film actress Stormy Daniels‘ lawsuit challenging the validity of a US$130,000 hush money agreement over a tryst she claimed they had more than a decade ago.

In a filing with the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles on Monday, Trump’s lawyer said the lawsuit by Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, is moot because Trump never signed the agreement and has said he will not try to enforce it.

“There is no actual controversy between the plaintiff and Mr. Trump,” the president’s lawyer Charles Harder wrote.

Reacting to the dismissal request, Michael Avenatti, who represents Daniels, said keeping the case alive serves the public interest, and wants Trump to give sworn testimony.

“This was anticipated and we are not concerned about it,” Avenatti said in an email.

Daniels has claimed to have had a sexual liaison with Trump at a 2006 celebrity golf tournament at Lake Tahoe, shortly after his wife Melania Trump gave birth to their son. But the president has repeatedly denied he had sex with Daniels.

A hearing on his dismissal request is scheduled for Dec. 3.

Daniels had struck the hush money agreement with Trump’s longtime personal lawyer Michael Cohen shortly before the 2016 presidential election.

In August, Cohen pleaded guilty to campaign finance violations, saying Trump told him before the election to arrange hush money payments to Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who claimed she had an affair with him. But Trump also denied having an affair with McDougal.