Giuliani settles legal fight with former Georgia election workers and agrees to stop defaming them

[January 17, 2025]  By LARRY NEUMEISTER and MICHAEL R. SISAK

NEW YORK (AP) — Rudy Giuliani reached a deal Thursday that lets the cash-strapped ex-New York City mayor keep his homes and belongings, including prized World Series rings, in exchange for unspecified compensation and a promise to never again speak ill of two former Georgia elections workers who won a $148 million defamation judgment against him.

The agreement resolves all pending litigation between Giuliani and the former election workers, Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Wandrea “Shaye” Moss. It also led to the cancellation of a trial that was supposed to begin Thursday to decide the ownership of his Florida condominium and three World Series rings that Giuliani, a prominent New York Yankees fan, had received from the team.

Giuliani, 80, was supposed to be the trial’s first witness, but he never showed up to the federal courthouse in Manhattan.

Instead, his and the women’s lawyers were there, toiling toward a resolution. After several hours without any court action, the lawyers emerged from a side room, shook hands and congratulated each other. Giuliani’s son, Andrew, who had claimed ownership of the rings, beamed as he left the courtroom.

“Today is a good day,” the younger Giuliani told reporters afterward.

Left unanswered: How much Giuliani agreed to pay the women, how he's footing the bill and whether anyone is helping him.

Giuliani had already begun turning over assets prior to the settlement, including his Manhattan apartment, which is worth about $5 million, a 1980 Mercedes once owned by movie star Lauren Bacall, numerous luxury watches and other belongings. His total assets are worth about $10 million.

Freeman and Moss won the massive judgment after saying Giuliani’s lies about them following President-elect Donald Trump’s 2020 election loss led to death threats.

“The past four years have been a living nightmare. We have fought to clear our names, restore our reputations, and prove that we did nothing wrong," the women said in a statement. "Today is a major milestone in our journey.”

With the agreement, they said, “we can now move forward with our lives.”

They added that they had "agreed to allow Mr. Giuliani to retain his property in exchange for compensation and his promise not to ever defame us.”

Giuliani said in a statement posted on social media and read to reporters by his lawyer that the settlement satisfies the judgment against him but “does not involve an admission of liability or wrongdoing."

“I am satisfied with and have no grievances relating to the result we have reached,” Giuliani said, adding that it allowed him to retain his Manhattan apartment and Florida condominium, as well as all of his personal belongings.

“No one deserves to be subjected to threats, harassment, or intimidation," the former mayor wrote. “This litigation has taken its toll on all parties. This whole episode was unfortunate. I and the Plaintiffs have agreed not to ever talk about each other in any defamatory manner, and I urge others to do the same.”

Giuliani's lawyer, Joseph Cammarata, said the deal sprung from negotiations over the last three days that went “into the wee hours of the night.”

Had an agreement not been reached, Giuliani would have been in court Thursday testifying before the same judge who last week found him in contempt for failing to turn over information on some of his assets to the women's lawyers. As punishment, Judge Lewis J. Liman banned Giuliani from using certain evidence.

Rudy Giuliani, center, speaks to reporters after leaving federal court in Washington, Friday, Jan. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

The trial, now averted, was not intended to relitigate whether Giuliani defamed the women or the size of the judgment against him.

Rather, it was to decide the fate of some of his prized assets, including his Florida condo, which is believed to be worth more than $3 million, and the World Series rings, which he touted as mementos of his time as “New York’s No. 1 Yankee fan.”

Giuliani argued that he established residence near Trump in Palm Beach, Florida, a year ago, but lawyers for Freeman and Moss say he continued to operate as if his New York apartment was his residence until he surrendered it last fall as part of the process of satisfying the judgment. Giuliani said he gave the rings to his son in 2018.

Andrew Giuliani said it's his understanding that he'll keep the rings.

Giuliani was also found in contempt last week in Washington, D.C. The judge there found that he continued to slander the election workers by repeating false claims that they counted votes corruptly during the 2020 presidential contest.

Giuliani, once heralded as “America’s Mayor” for his post-9/11 leadership, served for a time as Trump’s personal attorney during the president-elect’s first term.

“SAVE RUDY!!!” Trump posted Sunday on his Truth Social platform.

As the lawyers were finalizing the settlement, Giuliani posted a video on social media showing a dog named Vinny on the grounds of Trump’s Florida estate. The dog, the post said, “loves hanging out at Mar-a-Lago” but is “ready to spend a lot more time in Washington, D.C.,” supporting Trump. It wasn't clear when the recording was made.

Giuliani filed for bankruptcy within days of the defamation verdict, pausing collection. After a judge threw out the case last July, finding that the former mayor had thumbed his nose at the process, Freeman and Moss sued to enforce payment.

As of last May, Giuliani had just over $1 million in a retirement account, nearly $94,000 in personal cash and about $237,000 in his company’s account, according to court filings.

At a recent hearing, Giuliani said he was “not impoverished” but that he didn't have access to most of his remaining assets.

“Everything I have is tied up," he lamented.

Giuliani said in sworn deposition testimony last month that after leaving office in 2002, the late Yankees owner George Steinbrenner gave him rings commemorating each of the four World Series the team won while he was mayor.

Giuliani testified that he insisted on paying for the rings, which were the same as the ones the players received, and told Steinbrenner: “These are for Andrew.” He said he immediately gave one to Andrew, a teen at the time, and kept three others for safekeeping. He estimated their total worth at $27,000.

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Associated Press writer Dave Collins contributed reporting.

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