Hunter Biden’s top lawyer in federal tax probe withdraws from case

Hunter Biden’s top defense lawyer in his federal tax case has asked to be recused, citing concerns he may be called as a witness in the questionable, now-defunct plea deal he helped hammer out.

Chris Clark, who helped negotiate the controversial plea agreement with the federal government that was ripped by a judge last month, will likely be a “percipient” witness in future proceedings about the disintegrated deal, according to court papers he filed Tuesday.

“Based on recent developments, it appears that the negotiation and drafting of the plea agreement and diversion agreement will be contested, and Mr. Clark is a percipient witness to those issues,” the motion-to-withdraw filing said.

“Under the ‘witness-advocate’ rule, it is inadvisable for Mr. Clark to continue as counsel in this case,” the filing said.

The judge is expected to sign off on the request.

The move comes the day after President Biden’s son shuffled his legal team to formally add longtime defense lawyer Abbe Lowell.

Lowell, who has previously represented former President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and other prominent figures, had been tapped last year to help the younger Biden navigate the onslaught of congressional GOP investigations against him.

But Lowell didn’t appear to be heavily involved in the Justice Department inquiry until recently.

Clark had been Hunter Biden’s lawyer throughout the five-year federal probe that charged the first son with two tax misdemeanors for willful failure to pay federal income taxes and a felony charge for possession of an illegal firearm while addicted to illicit drugs.

The motion to withdraw Clark from the case argued that his exit will not “cause a substantial hardship” to the younger Biden because he has plenty of access to other firms for representation.

Last month, US District Judge Maryellen Noreika, a Trump appointee, had ripped into the proposed probation-only plea agreement in Hunter’s tax case.

Prosecutors implied that the first son is still weathering DOJ scrutiny over his foreign business dealings, which supposedly surprised his side, and no deal was agreed on.

Lowell incredulously told CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday in defense of Hunter’s team, “What group of experienced defense lawyers would allow their client to plead guilty to a misdemeanor on a Monday keeping in mind that they knew that there could be a felony charge on a Wednesday?”

Noreika also raised constitutional concerns over the plea deal, specifically involving the mechanics of a pretrial diversion agreement related to the firearm charge.

Hunter Biden ultimately opted to plead not guilty last month after the deal crumbled.

Last Friday, US Attorney General Merrick Garland granted Delaware US Attorney David Weiss — the point person in the Hunter Biden case — special counsel authority.

This appointment will give him more flexibility to pursue additional charges against the first son outside of his legal district, which had been a point of consternation for IRS whistleblowers.

Just before the collapse of the plea deal, two IRS whistleblowers testified in front of Congress alleging that the federal probe of the first son was rife with political bias.

Among the concerns raised was that federal prosecutors were unable to prosecute alleged tax crimes against Hunter Biden in either Washington, DC, or California because they were outside Weiss’ district.

US attorneys in those districts did not bring forward those potential charges, and now the statute of limitations appears to have run out on those allegations, although there always could be others in the future.

Defenders of the first son, such as Lowell, have noted that Weiss, the top prosecutor, was appointed by Trump.

Meanwhile, President Biden has distanced himself from the legal headaches surrounding his son, insisting that he loves and is proud of Hunter.