From $50 Million to Breakup: The Story of Alina Habba and Trump

US President Donald Trump sparked new controversy surrounding his former lawyer, Alina Habba Meldon, after describing a contract she secured worth over $50 million as "outrageous and unacceptable."

The sensitivity of the case lies in the fact that the contract was signed with a company connected to the family of a Venezuelan banker who sought a presidential pardon, before Trump issued a pardon for him in January 2026.

The details of the case date back to October 2025, when Habba signed an agreement to work as general legal counsel for "Concord Partners," founded by Isabella Herrera, daughter of Venezuelan banker Julio Herrera Velutini.

Under the agreement, the Herrera family guaranteed her more than $50 million over four years, at a rate of $10 million annually, plus additional bonuses and incentives, according to revelations by the "New York Times."

Herrera Velutini was facing US criminal charges related to bribery before reaching a plea deal in August 2025 regarding a less serious violation concerning campaign financing. At the same time, his family was seeking a presidential pardon for him, which was indeed granted.

The timing's sensitivity increases given the positions Habba held; she signed the agreement in October 2025 while serving as Acting Federal Prosecutor in New Jersey, before resigning on December 8 of the same year and being appointed Senior Counsel to the Deputy Attorney General.

She began working for "Concord Partners" on January 1, 2026, two weeks before the pardon for Herrera was issued.

Habba denied receiving money in exchange for securing the pardon, stating that she did not meet with any White House or Justice Department official to discuss the matter, nor did she perform any action on behalf of anyone to obtain a presidential pardon.

It has not been proven that the contract was compensation for her intervention in the Venezuelan banker's file. However, Trump himself publicly criticized the agreement, calling it "provocative, outrageous, and unacceptable," and said he told Habba that he did not want her to receive this money.

An Iraqi in the World of Law

Alina Saad Habba was born on March 25, 1984, in Summit, New Jersey, to Iraqi parents who immigrated to the United States in the early 1980s.

Her family belongs to the Chaldean Catholic Church, and Habba has spoken on public occasions about her Arab and Iraqi background, describing herself as a first-generation American of Middle Eastern descent.

She studied political science at Lehigh University, graduating in 2005, before working in the fashion sector between 2005 and 2007, in accessories marketing and production at American designer Marc Jacobs' company.

She later returned to studies, obtaining a law degree from Widener Law School in 2010, then worked as a judicial clerk for Judge Eugene Cody Jr. in New Jersey, before moving to private practice.

In 2020, she founded her law firm "Habba Madaio & Associates," based in Bedminster, New Jersey, a city that houses one of Trump's golf clubs.

A Meeting That Changed Her Life Path

Habba's relationship with Trump began in 2021, when she met him at his private golf club in Bedminster. The meeting occurred at a time when the former president was facing a series of lawsuits and investigations after leaving the White House following his loss in the 2020 elections.

Habba joined his legal team and quickly became one of his most prominent spokespersons and defenders in the media, benefiting from her frequent appearances on television programs and her sharp style in confronting his political and legal opponents.

She defended him in several high-profile civil cases, including the defamation lawsuit filed by writer E. Jean Carroll, which ended in January 2024 with a jury verdict ordering Trump to pay $83.3 million in damages.

She also represented him in a lawsuit he filed against Hillary Clinton and other Democratic figures, accusing them of conspiring to smear his image by promoting allegations of Russian interference in the US elections.

However, the court dismissed the lawsuit and imposed financial sanctions on Trump and his lawyers, including Habba, totaling approximately $938,000, due to what the judge described as a lack of legal basis for the suit and its use for political purposes.

During that period, Habba became a known face in Trump's legal and political circle, participating in the Republican National Convention in 2024, where she defended him and presented him as a victim of what she described as the politicization of the judiciary.

From Advisor to Federal Position

With Trump's return to the White House in January 2025, he appointed Habba as a presidential advisor, a move reflecting the level of trust he placed in her after years of working within his legal team and political campaigns.

In March of the same year, she moved to the position of Temporary Federal Prosecutor in New Jersey, becoming responsible for overseeing federal criminal prosecutions in the state.

However, her appointment faced legal objections, especially given her lack of prior experience in prosecutorial work and her close professional and political ties to Trump.

The legitimacy of her continuation in the position entered into a legal dispute after a court ruled that the procedures the administration relied upon to keep her in office were inconsistent with the law.

Habba's tenure as Federal Prosecutor ended in December 2025 when she resigned and was appointed Senior Counsel to the Deputy Attorney General, a position that kept her within the administrative circle of the Department of Justice.

Marriage

In September 2026, Habba married Turkish businessman Turhan Meldon, aged 29, in a ceremony held at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York, according to press reports.

Meldon heads the investment firm "Miller Holding," which operates in sectors and projects outside Turkey, particularly in Africa, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, and his name has been linked to commercial relations in Venezuela.

Their marriage attracted media attention given Meldon's business background and connections to figures in the US administration's circle, but it represents a separate path from the $50 million contract case linked to the family of Venezuelan banker Herrera Velutini, and there is no published evidence proving a direct link between the two issues.

A Professional Rise Surrounded by Questions

Habba's career reveals a rapid transition from practicing law in New Jersey to an advanced position in the US President's legal and political circle, benefiting from her role in defending him during years of legal confrontations and the trust he granted her.

But her transition between private defense of Trump, working at the Department of Justice, and then securing a commercial contract worth tens of millions from the family of a person seeking a presidential pardon, placed her career before questions regarding the separation of public responsibilities and private interests.

With Trump himself entering the line of criticism, the issue is no longer limited to debate over the size or timing of the contract, but extends to the nature of the relationship between those around the President and the financial interests of parties seeking access to power in Washington.