By William Bastone

thesmokinggun.com videos and/or details about sexual indiscre- tions, STDs, and all manner of regrettable behavior. With a client roster that has included mem- bers of a distinctly Hollywood demimonde— strippers, escorts, pimps, tweakers, and celebrity hangers-on—Davidson is a legal grinder who has represented the interests of clients who would not get past the recep- tionist at established Century City law firms. On multiple occasions, Davidson signed up clients thanks to a symbiotic relationship he developed with Mike Walters, one of the most influential figures in celebrity journal- ism. Walters, who worked at TMZ for more by william bastone than a decade before recently launching his own gossip web site, steered individuals pos- sessing celebrity dirt to Davidson for legal ho is Keith Davidson? charged that Davidson was guilty of legal representation. The TMZ pipeline proved malpractice. McDougal, 47, accused Da- lucrative for the attorney, but it was an ethi- Until he negotiated financial settle- vidson of lying to her, secretly “colluding” cally dubious arrangement that Walters W ments for a Playboy Playmate and with Cohen, and pressuring her to sign an sought to keep secret. a porn star who separately claimed affairs agreement she did not understand. While with a married Donald Trump, the Beverly In one instance, after heartily recommend- “pretending to advocate on her behalf,” Da- Hills lawyer was a low-profile Los Angeles ing Davidson to a sex tape peddler, Walters vidson was actually working in concert with attorney whose solo practice operated from explained that the referral came with a cave- Trump representatives, McDougal alleged. a small sublet office in a Wilshire Boulevard at: If the source told anyone about the David- In response, Davidson said McDougal’s building. son recommendation, Walters warned, he complaint contained “an incomplete and would “deny it to the bitter end.” Asked if he But news of the six-figure payouts Davidson misleading depiction of the facts, circum- paid Walters for steering clients to him, Da- arranged in the weeks before the 2016 presi- stances, and communications” related to his vidson would only say, “One, I don’t want to dential election for model Karen McDougal representation of the model. lie to you. And two, I don’t want to ever have and adult actress Stephanie “Stormy Dan- While Cohen had no role in Davidson’s hir- an adverse effect on someone else’s life.” iels” Clifford have stripped the 46-year-old ing by McDougal or Clifford, Trump’s attor- attorney of his anonymity. Now swamped Mark Geragos, a veteran Los Angeles at- ney last year did steer a client to the Califor- with interview requests from journalists na- torney, said that, “For the niche [Davidson] nia lawyer (long after the two hush money tionwide, Davidson has watched as his pro- has carved out—which I guess most people agreements were sealed). Cohen, who has fessionalism has come under attack and his would shy away from—he’s always struck me hailed Davidson as an ethical and “tireless e-mails, retainer agreements, and billing re- as honorable and a man of his word.” Geragos advocate for his clients,” referred Chuck cords related to the McDougal and Clifford LaBella, a television producer who worked deals have been leaked to the press. closely with Trump on “The Apprentice,” The payments to McDougal ($150,000) and Miss USA and Miss Universe telecasts, and Clifford—whose $130,000 came via Michael the Comedy Central roast of the mogul, to Cohen, Trump’s personal attorney—have Davidson. LaBella hired Davidson in the face prompted the filing of complaints with the of tweets by comedian Tom Arnold charg- Federal Election Commission that contend ing that LaBella knew damaging informa- the hush money amounted to improper in- tion about Trump’s activities in Russia. In kind contributions to the Trump campaign. an October 2017 e-mail to Arnold’s lawyer, Additionally, two Democratic representa- Davidson wrote that Arnold had falsely “im- tives have asked the FBI to investigate the plicated Chuck as a witness to sordid events legality of “monetary payments to silence regarding Donald Trump.” As a result, Da- women alleging affairs with Mr. Trump.” vidson claimed, LaBella was “undergoing severe emotional distress.” Davidson is no longer counsel for McDougal or Clifford, both of whom fired him and now Davidson’s professional success—and the complain of being dissatisfied with his rep- related entanglements he has found himself resentation and the restrictive nature of the in—are a product of his position as the attor- settlements he negotiated on their behalf. ney to hire if you are seeking to monetize a The two women, Davidson told TSG, are the celebrity sex tape or compromising informa- only clients he has represented in connec- tion about public figures like Trump, Charlie tion with legal claims against Trump. Sheen, Tiger Woods, and Kanye West. Da- vidson specializes in extracting payments in In a blistering March 20 lawsuit, McDougal Keith Davidson exchange for the quashing of incriminating 1 april 4, 2018 thesmokinggun.com estimated that he has dealt with Davidson on a profile that he knew was the product of a On the following Tuesday, March 20, an more than ten occasions, and that each time, reportorial excavation of his legal career. e-mail arrived at the Manhattan law firm “I’m representing the target, he’s represent- that formed TSG Industries, Inc. (an online Dressed in a suit and sipping an iced coffee, ing the person who’s seeking compensation.” search of New York State Division of Corpo- Davidson was towing luggage with him since ration records yields the firm’s name). The But for every opposing counsel who speaks he was next headed to the airport for a flight e-mail—sent from a Gmail account carry- highly of Davidson, there are lawyers like home. When it became clear that the report- ing the name “Joanna Martinix”—repeated David Houston, who represents the wrestler er had not been dissuaded, Davidson made a claims that the site and its editor were en- Hulk Hogan. “He makes a living off creat- parting request. “Don’t kill me,” he laughed. gaged in “business activities” with an Italian ing misery for people, and it’s nothing to be “Just break a leg.” organized crime family (these revelations proud of,” Houston said of Davidson. “And As it turned out, though, Davidson made one supposedly emerged via “due diligence”). you certainly shouldn’t use your law degree more trip across the country to sit opposite Martinix wrote that “our client” had met to accomplish what amounts to, in my hum- the author of this story. He had a confiden- with a TSG reporter “this past weekend,” but ble opinion, extortion.” tial matter to discuss, he explained on the that the journalist was “unwilling to resolve Owen McIntosh, who took over represen- phone, and it could only be done in person. this matter amicably.” tation of a woman who fired Davidson, said On March 18, Davidson arrived at 9:30 AM The Martinix e-mail was sent to the lawyer that, “What he did in my case was inappro- for a meeting at the same Greenwich Village who Davidson’s intel memo accused of be- priate.” McIntosh, whose client claimed to restaurant where he had previously been in- ing in criminal cahoots with TSG and Italian have been assaulted by Lindsay Lohan, add- terviewed. Within minutes of sitting down, gangsters. Martinix requested that the attor- ed that Davidson’s conduct was “not some- the grim-faced attorney said, “Bill, while ney intercede with the reporter since publi- thing that I would have done nor any attor- you’ve been investigating me, I’ve been in- cation of TSG’s story seemed imminent. The ney that I know of that understands law and vestigating you.” e-mail appeared to be a warning that the at- obligations to a client.” torney and his law firm would somehow be He then reached into his bag and retrieved Davidson is currently a defendant in three smeared unless they stopped publication of a file folder, from which he removed a two- separate lawsuits charging him with being this article. page document. Davidson explained that the a shakedown artist with a JD (he bristles at memo he was about to hand over was pre- Shortly after the e-mail was received, a man claims that extortion is a foundational ele- pared by an unnamed private investigator using the name Michael Wilhelm called the ment of his practice). His accusers are Ho- with whom he often works. law firm. Wilhelm, dialing from a Google gan, one of the stars of ABC’s “Shark Tank,” Voice number (518-407-3011), identified and a waiter at a celebrity-drenched West The document—which had several redac- himself as a “consultant” calling on behalf Hollywood restaurant. Davidson has also tions at the top of its opening page—made a of a client. He also sought to engage one of been the target of federal and state criminal series of stunning claims that were purport- the firm’s lawyers on the subject of TSG’s investigations stemming from the Hogan sex edly backed up by intelligence reports. The alleged criminal connections. Reached lat- tape case. While those probes did not result Smoking Gun and this reporter, the memo er on the phone, Wilhelm declined to talk in criminal charges, they uncovered ques- stated, were connected to an international about Davidson. “Listen, Bill,” he said. “It’s tionable behavior on the part of Davidson, narcotics distribution ring overseen by an between you and the other guy.

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