The so-called advice-of-counsel defense is a well-established legal routine that tries to cast doubt in a defendant’s culpability by spreading fault to people who were advising him, and should have known better.
DOJ lawyers, however, have long argued this strategy is besides the point, and have filed numerous documents in the case saying SBF’s lawyers should be prohibited from making it, in part because it might distract the jury from the actual crime….
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And so, Kaplan, as is his right, will decide this morning what if any of SBF’s testimony about the advice his lawyers gave him can become an official part of his defense. Whether allowed or not, SBF is fighting an uphill battle. As Kaplan himself asked defense after SBF’s testimony, looking for their input on why this should all go before a jury: Isn’t this a matter of a thief stealing money and asking lawyers to draft up documents allowing him to spend it?
Source: What’s the Deal With Sam Bankman-Fried’s ‘Advice of Counsel’ Defense
