Michael Avenatti

Michael John Avenatti (born February 16, 1971) is an American former attorney currently incarcerated in federal prison for felony fraud and extortion. He is best known for his legal representation of adult film actress Stormy Daniels in lawsuits against then U.S. President Donald Trump, and his multiple convictions for attempting to extort sports apparel company Nike and defrauding and embezzling settlement money from a series of other clients. In the late 2010s, Avenatti appeared extensively on television and in print as a legal and political commentator, and as a representative for prominent clients.

In March 2019, Avenatti was indicted in California and New York on various criminal counts including extortion, tax evasion, fraud, and embezzlement. On February 14, 2020, Avenatti was convicted of extorting Nike in a New York court, and on July 8, 2021, he was sentenced to 30 months in prison. In a subsequent case, he was sentenced to four years of prison for a financial crime against Stormy Daniels, with 18 of those months to be served concurrently with the Nike sentence, thus adding 12 months to his total time to serve. He has been imprisoned since February 7, 2022. On June 12, 2025, he was sentenced to 11 years for stealing millions from clients, to be served concurrently with the Stormy Daniels sentence. He was disbarred from practice in California on February 5, 2025.

Early life and education

Avenatti was born on February 16, 1971, in Sacramento, California, into a family of Italian heritage. He spent his early childhood in Colorado and Utah. His father was a manager for Anheuser-Busch. He moved with his family to Chesterfield, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis, in 1982, where he attended Parkway Central High School.