New York Mayor Eric Adams has added a trio of prominent litigators to his defense team as he fights federal criminal charges.
William Burck, who worked in the George W. Bush White House and serves on the board of media giant Fox Corp., is advising Adams, according to a Monday court filing. The politically-connected lawyer has represented Stephen Bannon, former president Donald Trump’s onetime adviser, and Trump administration officials Don McGahn and Reince Preibus, among other clients.
Litigators John Bash III and Avi Perry have also joined the Adams defense team. All three lawyers are former federal prosecutors who are now partners at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan. Alex Spiro, another Quinn partner known for representing Elon Musk and Alec Baldwin, is leading the defense.
Adams has vowed to remain in his role as mayor and fight the charges. His lawyers on Monday asked a court to dismiss the case, in which the Justice Department accuses Adams of accepting lavish travel perks and improper ties to the Turkish government.
Burck, who became a leader of litigation-focused Quinn Emanuel two years ago, is known for counseling billionaire NFL team owners like Robert Kraft and Stephen Ross. He also recently handled a lawsuit by the University of Tennessee challenging the authority of the governing body for US college sports.
Perry, who joined Quinn Emanuel a year ago, is now co-chair of the law firm’s securities, commodities, and derivatives practices. Bash worked with Spiro on a defamation case for Musk earlier this year in Texas that saw opposing counsel unsuccessfully seek Spiro’s disqualification.
Spiro, Perry, Burck, and Bash didn’t respond to requests for comment. Nor did Adams’ office when asked about the mechanisms in place for paying his defense counsel.
A legal defense fund for Adams has disclosed it paid nearly $877,900 to law firm Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr through May of this year. Pitta LLP, which manages the fund, has received $37,500 for its services since the fund was created in November 2023.
Several staffers—including lawyers—have left the Adams administration in recent months as it grappled with various probes. Brendan McGuire, a former chief counsel to Adams in public service, is now representing him as a partner at WilmerHale.
New Top Lawyer for Mayor’s Fund
On Monday another lawyer, Theresa Hassler, announced via LinkedIn that she’s become general counsel for the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City. The nonprofit run by the city works with wealthy donors to raise money to address issues like housing and immigration.
The fund has been without a full-time leader for several months amid scrutiny into some of its practices. Hassler was most recently chief counsel to Cordell Cleare, a Democratic state senator New York City who has worked with Adams on some matters.
Hassler didn’t return a comment request about her new role with the fund. Nor did William Heinzen, a special counsel to Adams as mayor who is also a director and vice chairman of the organization’s board.
The case is US v. Adams, S.D.N.Y., No. 24-cr-00556, 9/30/24
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