Two political action committees affiliated with President Donald Trump paid nearly $8 million in legal bills over the first six months of this year, paying law firms that have been defending him in personal and political court fights that have trailed him through 18 months of his second term. 

Save America and Make America Great Again PAC also reported about $5 million still owed to law firms, according to their latest disclosure filings. 

Since Trump’s return to the White House last year, several of his high-profile court battles have slowed down and so has his political committees’ legal spending, but many of the cases have not gone away completely, still costing the president millions in legal bills. This week, $5.6 million in damages and interest paid by Trump was transferred to writer E. Jean Carroll, three years after a jury found him liable for sexually abusing her in 1996 and later defaming her on social media.

Also this week, a federal judge lambasted Trump’s settlement with the IRS as the product of collusive, backroom dealings. And Trump is still appealing his conviction on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to conceal a hush money payment to adult-film actress Stormy Daniels during the 2016 campaign.

According to the latest campaign finance disclosures, the biggest chunk of Trump-affiliated PACs’ legal bills in the first half of this year went to Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, a law firm that has represented Trump in his appeal of the hush money case. The firm, which has also reportedly been engaged to handle Trump’s ongoing appeal of Carroll’s $83.3 million verdict over additional defamation claims, has been paid at least $2.3 million by Save America, disclosures show.

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Soorin Kim

Soorin Kim is a White House producer with MS NOW.