(Adds comment from Huawei spokesman)
By Karen Freifeld
Dec 3 (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Tuesday disqualified James
Cole, a Washington lawyer for China's Huawei, from defending the
telecommunications equipment maker against charges of bank fraud
and sanctions violations.
Judge Ann Donnelly of U.S. District Court in Brooklyn, New
York, issued her order after federal prosecutors argued that
Cole's prior work at the Department of Justice created conflicts
of interest.
Cole served as the deputy attorney general, the No. 2
official, at the Justice Department between 2011 and 2015.
"There is a 'substantial risk' that Cole could use
'confidential factual information' obtained while serving as DAG
to 'materially advance' Huawei's current defense strategy," the
U.S. prosecutors said in a May court filing.
Cole, a partner at the law firm Sidley Austin, said he had
no recollection of matters referenced as the basis for his
disqualification. He did not immediately respond to a request
for comment on the judge's decision.
"We are disappointed in the court's decision, which we
believe violates Huawei's Sixth Amendment right to counsel of
its choice," Huawei spokesman Joe Kelly said in a statement.
"We reserve our right to appeal this decision when appropriate."
In the May court filing, the government argued that, as
deputy attorney general, Cole "personally supervised and
participated in aspects of" a related investigation, but said
the details were classified.
A redacted version of Donnelly's decision to disqualify Cole
will be made public by Jan. 10, the judge said in her order.
The criminal case against Huawei accuses the company of
conspiring to defraud HSBC Holdings Plc and other banks
by misrepresenting its relationship with a company that operated
in Iran. Prosecutors said Huawei put the banks at risk of
penalties for processing transactions that violated U.S.
sanctions.
Cole entered a not guilty plea on behalf of Huawei and its
U.S. subsidiary in March.
The company's chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou,
daughter of Huawei's founder, is fighting extradition from
Canada, where she was arrested last December for her role in the
alleged fraud. Meng has said she is innocent.
Michael Levy, another lawyer for the company, argued in
court in September that the effort to stop Cole from
representing Huawei was another tactical step in a broader U.S.
government campaign against the Chinese company.
(Reporting by Karen Freifeld
Additional reporting by Jonathan Stempel
Editing by Leslie Adler)
HSBC Holdings (HSBA)