Kenneth Chesebro, a former legal adviser to Donald Trump’s 2020 presidential campaign and a central figure in the effort to overturn the election results, has been officially disbarred in New York.
The state appellate court issued the disbarment order in June, citing Chesebro’s criminal conduct in the now-infamous fake electors scheme targeting key battleground states.
The court ruled that Chesebro’s conviction for conspiracy to commit the filing of false documents—linked to efforts to disrupt the certification of President Joe Biden’s win in Georgia—was incompatible with his oath as an attorney.
“His conduct undercuts the very notion of our constitutional democracy that he, as an attorney, swore an oath to uphold,” the court wrote in a sharply worded opinion.
Chesebro, admitted to practice law in New York in 2007, had previously been suspended from the bar in 2023 following his indictment. That same year, he pleaded guilty to one felony count as part of a plea deal with Georgia prosecutors, admitting to his involvement in a scheme that sought to assemble unauthorized pro-Trump electors in states Biden had won.
According to court findings, Chesebro not only contributed legal advice but was instrumental in designing and implementing the strategy to disrupt the Electoral College process on January 6, 2021. The court-appointed official overseeing the disciplinary process found that the “testimony and documentary evidence” supported the conclusion that Chesebro acted as a key architect of the plan. His legal memos and operational guidance reportedly helped orchestrate the multi-state scheme.
The appellate panel also criticized what it called Chesebro’s “cavalier attitude” about his actions, noting that his background in constitutional and election law made his misconduct particularly egregious.
Chesebro’s disbarment adds him to a growing list of Trump-aligned attorneys who have faced professional consequences for their involvement in election interference efforts. Rudy Giuliani has already been disbarred in both New York and Washington, D.C., while Jenna Ellis was suspended from practicing law in Colorado for three years after entering a guilty plea in the Georgia case.
Trump, who has pleaded not guilty to charges in the same Georgia election interference case, was indicted alongside Chesebro and 17 others. However, the case has since stalled, partly due to the Trump’s 2024 election campaign and victory and the removal of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis as lead prosecutor.
