Donald Trump has chosen to withdraw his $500-million lawsuit against his former attorney and confidant, Michael Cohen, who has become a crucial witness in a criminal case against the former president. This development was confirmed by both Cohen and a spokesperson for Trump on Thursday (October 5) night. However, Trump has not relinquished his right to pursue legal action against Cohen in the future.

In his initial lawsuit, Trump had accused Cohen of deliberately spreading false information with malicious intent, causing significant damage to his reputation.

This stemmed from Cohen's public disclosures regarding hush money payments made to women during Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, a matter central to the criminal charges Trump faces in New York.

Additionally, Trump alleged that Cohen had violated a confidentiality agreement that was part of his employment contract.

Trump's decision to drop the lawsuit comes just days before he was scheduled to provide a deposition in the case, which was originally set for October 3 but was rescheduled to accommodate Trump's participation in a separate civil fraud trial in New York.

Michael Cohen is expected to testify in the upcoming New York trial next week.

A spokesperson for Trump explained that the former president had opted to "temporarily pause" the lawsuit against Cohen as he embarks on another presidential campaign and battles criminal charges across multiple jurisdictions.

The spokesperson clarified that Trump intends to refile the lawsuit at a later date.

The statement read, "Given that President Trump is required to sit for a deposition in a civil matter on Columbus Day, when he is scheduled to be in the Great State of New Hampshire, and while the President is fighting against the meritless claims that have been lodged against him in New York, Washington D.C., Florida, and Georgia, as well as continuing his winning campaign ... President Trump has decided to temporarily pause his meritorious claims against Michael Cohen."

The spokesperson also emphasised that once Trump has successfully navigated through his legal challenges, he will resume pursuing his claims against Michael Cohen, holding him accountable for his alleged unlawful actions and words, akin to how the Southern District of New York held Cohen accountable for various non-Trump related acts and crimes, leading to his conviction as a felon.

In response to Trump's decision, Michael Cohen celebrated the development, characterising the lawsuit as nothing more than an attempt to intimidate him.

Cohen remarked, "Mr Trump’s cowardly dismissal spells the end of this latest attempt to deter me from providing truthful testimony against him."

"My legal team and I now look forward to turning our full attention to holding Mr Trump accountable for his latest abuse of the legal system. More to come," he said.

The lawsuit, originally filed in Miami, provided a glimpse into the arguments likely to be featured in Trump's defence against charges related to alleged falsification of internal business records to conceal payments made during the 2016 presidential campaign aimed at silencing claims of an extramarital affairs.

Throughout this legal saga, Donald Trump has consistently denied any wrongdoing.

Furthermore, in a separate development, Donald Trump officially endorsed Republican Jim Jordan of Ohio as the successor to Kevin McCarthy as House Speaker, signalling his support for the pugnacious House Judiciary Committee chairman and long-time Trump loyalist.

(Edited by : Shoma Bhattacharjee)