In this file photo taken on November 19, 2020, personal lawyer of US President Donald Trump, Rudy Giuliani, speaks at a press conference at the Republican National Committee headquarters in Washington, DC.
A court has suspended Rudy Giuliani's law license in the state of New York for claiming that Donald Trump lost last year's presidential election because of fraud.
A New York court on Thursday ruled that Giuliani made "demonstrably false and misleading statements" as Trump's lawyer during the ex-president's attempt to overturn his defeat to Joe Biden.
Giuliani, 77, helped the Trump campaign file numerous lawsuits in several states alleging without evidence that the Democratic Party had rigged the election.
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"These false statements were made to improperly bolster respondent's narrative that due to widespread voter fraud, victory in the 2020 United States presidential election was stolen from his client," the appellate court wrote in a 33-page ruling.
The court added that Giuliani's conduct "immediately threatens the public interest and warrants interim suspension from the practice of law."
The request to remove his license was filed by dozens of prominent lawyers who said they were acting to defend American democracy.
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Sanctions could be next
Giuliani can challenge the decision, however, the ruling noted that at the end of the proceedings he will likely face "substantial permanent sanctions."
The suspension is remarkable for the fact Giuliani once served as the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, one of the top prosecutor jobs in the United States.
He was also mayor of New York City for eight years, earning national acclaim for leading the US financial capital in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the US by Al Qaeda.
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Giuliani is currently in the crosshairs of Manhattan prosecutors who are investigating his activities in Ukraine.
Giuliani was Trump's personal lawyer when the president was impeached in December 2019 for seeking political help from Ukraine.
FBI agents raided his New York home and offices in late April. He has denounced the operation as politically motivated.
In a statement Thursday, Trump called Giuliani a "great American patriot" and said the suspension was "nothing but a Witch Hunt."
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