BUSINESS/LEGAL/MICHAEL COHEN/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/WOMEN: “From its origins as a conduit to pay hush money, Essential Consultants LLC has evolved into a nexus in federal investigations buffeting the Trump administration. Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s personal attorney, set up the Delaware limited liability company to pay former adult-movie actress Stephanie Clifford, professionally known as Stormy Daniels. Now the company has become a central piece of an investigation, led by the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office, into whether Mr. Cohen committed federal bank fraud, money laundering or other crimes, according to people familiar with the matter. The LLC has also emerged in special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into foreign interference in the election. Last year, the special counsel requested information from pharmaceutical company Novartis AG and telecommunications giant AT&T Inc. in connection with payments they made to Essential Consultants in return for Mr. Cohen’s advice. Essential Consultants received $500,000 last year from an investment-management firm called Columbus Nova, whose biggest investor is a company founded by Russian oligarch Viktor F. Vekselberg.”
-Joe Palazzolo, Michael Rothfeld and Nicole Hong, “How a Firm That Paid Stormy Daniels Hush Money Became Enmeshed in Federal Probes,” The Wall Streeet Journal, May 10, 2018 5:30 am