Less than two weeks after a jury ordered him to pay almost $150 million to two former Georgia election workers for defamation, Rudy Giuliani filed for bankruptcy on Thursday in federal court in New York.
Giuliani disclosed assets up to $10 million and debts between $100 million and $500 million in the declaration.
The filing for bankruptcy is the another blow to the once-front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, the former mayor of New York City, federal prosecutor, and lawyer for Donald Trump following the 2020 election.
Among his debts are hundreds of thousands of dollars to accountants and attorneys, as well as about a million dollars in delinquent taxes.
He also mentions several claims that are still outstanding, three of which are related to his statements made during the 2020 election and have not yet reached trial. If he is found liable for damages in those instances, that could increase his debt.
According to Giuliani's political advisor Ted Goodman, "no one should be surprised by the filing," he stated on Thursday. It was implausible for anyone to think that Mayor Rudy Giuliani would be able to afford such a hefty fine. Chapter 11 will guarantee that all creditors are handled equally and fairly throughout the process by giving Mayor Giuliani the chance and time to file an appeal while maintaining financial transparency under the bankruptcy court's supervision.
It happens one day after the two plaintiffs, Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, were given the go-ahead to start collecting from Giuliani by the federal judge overseeing the sensational defamation case.
In her order on Wednesday, US District Judge Beryl Howell stated that Giuliani had avoided disclosing his value by declining to provide any evidence he had in the case prior to trial, never acknowledging earlier court orders requiring him to pay back the women for his legal fees, and continuously claiming he is broke and that the verdict will seriously harm him.
Giuliani's lawyer Joseph Sibley stated during the trial that Freeman and Moss were requesting "the civil equivalent of the death penalty."
Sibley declared, "They're trying to end Mr. Giuliani."
Giuliani might approach the bankruptcy court to excuse his debt to Moss and Freeman, just like Alex Jones attempted to do in his defamation lawsuit against Sandy Hook but was unsuccessful.
However, Giuliani's admission that he maliciously defamed them was included in the final ruling in the 2020 election defamation lawsuit, which made it more difficult for him to get out of his responsibility to them.
Meanwhile, the attorneys for Moss and Freeman have promised to move swiftly to file liens on Giuliani's current Florida and New York properties and look into any potential financial sources for him, including Newsmax, where he hosts a show.
Devan Cole and Katelyn Polantz of CNN contributed to this article.