Michael Avenatti Is Found Guilty of Stealing From Stormy Daniels

They were once united in an effort to topple Donald J. Trump. But even then, a jury found, Mr. Avenatti was stealing from his famous client.

Four years ago, Stormy Daniels and Michael Avenatti presented a united front against President Donald J. Trump.

Ms. Daniels, a pornographic film actress, said she had been paid $130,000 just before the 2016 presidential election to keep quiet about a sexual encounter she said she had with Mr. Trump years earlier. Her lawyer, Mr. Avenatti, filed a lawsuit in 2018 saying a nondisclosure agreement accompanying the payment was void because Mr. Trump had not signed it.

But even as he condemned “thuggish behavior” aimed at Ms. Daniels by “people in power,” Mr. Avenatti was stealing from her, a jury in Manhattan found on Friday.