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Trump's ex-lawyer Alina Habba Mildon loses $50 million contract with pardoned banker's family

Concord Partners cited a failure to perform duties. She denies her job had anything to do with Trump's pardon of banker Julio Herrera Velutini, the founder's father.

Alina Habba in her official portrait as interim U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey in 2025
Alina Habba in her official portrait as interim U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey in 2025. Photo: U.S. Department of Justice, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
9 news outlets reported this
Liberal4 outletsThe pardon timeline and the Mildons' troublesCenter1 outletContract lost after Trump's criticismConservative4 outletsTrump's rebuke and the questions over the pardon
ABRAnews EditorialPublished 1 min read
Overview

Alina Habba Mildon, a former attorney for President Trump, has been fired by Concord Partners, a Florida company founded by Isabela Herrera, daughter of Venezuelan banker Julio Herrera Velutini. According to The New York Times, a letter dated Nov. The Times also quotes someone close to the Herrera family, who claims her priorities appeared to change after she started dating Turkish investor Turhan Mildon, whom she married in September. Signed in October 2025, her contract specified payments of $10 million per year over four years, in addition to bonuses, and it is described as a $50 million agreement.

She began as general counsel on Jan. 1 while a senior adviser to the . On Jan. 15, Trump gave Julio Herrera a full and unconditional . He had faced bribery charges before a reduced them to a misdemeanor campaign finance violation.

Mildon denies that her job was tied to the pardon. Trump told reporters at Mar-a-Lago on Oct. 31 that he did not want her paid and called the deal "totally obnoxious and outrageous." She reportedly keeps an $8 million signing bonus and $6.5 million already paid.

She declined to comment, and a person close to her says she plans legal action.

Key figures

Three sides of the story

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9 news outlets reported this

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Liberal4 outlets

The pardon timeline and the Mildons' troubles

The Daily Beast calls her a " Lawyer" dumped from a deal that "raised questions about his pardon" of a Venezuelan billionaire, and notes Trump has said she should donate some of her earnings to his library. The Boston Globe runs The New York Times's report and lays out the timeline: Herrera's lenient plea deal, his daughter's $3.5 million gift to a Trump-tied , then the pardon weeks after Mildon started. It also follows her husband.

The Times found Turhan Mildon made "misleading, exaggerated or disputed statements," including about his age. White House officials concluded the $17.6 million at the center of her dispute with Richard Grenell came from a Congo government account. The Independent carries the same details, including Trump's "I thought it was terrible," and the Grenell inquiry.

All three quote Mildon's statement that any insinuation her job was tied to a pardon is false, and say a person close to her plans legal action. The New York Times says the contract came weeks before the pardon.

Center1 outlet

Contract lost after Trump's criticism

The Hill says Mildon, a former Trump attorney, has reportedly lost a multimillion-dollar contract with the family company of a billionaire banker Trump pardoned. Its headline says she loses the $50 million deal after Trump's criticism. The Hill says Concord Partners, set up in Florida by Venezuelan billionaire Julio Herrera Velutini's daughter, terminated the contract.

Conservative4 outlets

Trump's rebuke and the questions over the pardon

Fox News leads with Trump's ex-lawyer losing a "massive contract days after president blasts 'outrageous' deal," citing The New York Times and a source who confirmed the termination to Fox News Digital. The New York Post calls it a "whopping $50M" contract and a "stunning split," quoting Trump at Mar-a-Lago: "I don't want her paid." Just the News credits the Post's report, says the timing "raises questions," and notes she "has denied any role in the pardon."

Fox and RedState quote her X post of Oct. 21: "I was never paid to secure a pardon." RedState adds that an ruled she was unlawfully serving as acting that she resigned in December 2025, and that New Jersey regulators filed an ethics complaint on Nov. 10 over a 2021 settlement. Its closing commentary argues Trump "was right to call out this deal" and that the Justice Department should explain to the public whether it signed off on the arrangement.

What a side did not mention
  • Liberal outlets did not mentionAn appeals court ruled she was unlawfully serving as acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey, and she resigned in December 2025. Reported by RedState, New York Post
  • Conservative outlets did not mentionThe White House inquiry into her accusation against Richard Grenell, with officials finding the $17.6 million came from a Congo government account. Reported by The Independent, The Boston Globe
All sources: 9 articles from 9 outlets

Liberal (4)

Center (1)

Conservative (4)

Attorney General

The head of the Justice Department and the government's chief lawyer. Each state has its own attorney general too.

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Pardon

The president forgives a federal crime and cancels the punishment. For crimes under state law the governor does it in most states.

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Felony and misdemeanor

A felony is a serious crime that can bring more than a year in prison, and a conviction can cost the right to vote or some jobs. A misdemeanor is a lesser offence: up to a year in jail, a fine or probation.

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Plea deal

The accused pleads guilty, usually to a lesser charge or for a lighter sentence, and there is no trial. Most criminal cases in the US end this way.

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MAGA

“Make America Great Again”: Donald Trump's slogan since his first presidential campaign, now also the name of his political movement and its supporters.

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PAC and super PAC

A political action committee collects donations and gives them to candidates within legal limits. A super PAC may raise and spend unlimited money on ads, but may not give to candidates or coordinate with them.

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Appeals court

A court that reviews a lower court's decision for legal mistakes. It does not hear witnesses again, and above the federal appeals courts there is only the Supreme Court.

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District attorney and US attorney

A district attorney is the local prosecutor, usually elected, who brings charges under state law. A US attorney is the federal prosecutor for a district, appointed by the president, who brings federal charges.

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