Plaintiff in Clinton Fundraising Dispute Still Awaiting His Day in Court

The plaintiff in the civil lawsuit over a 2000 fund-raiser for Hillary Clinton's first U.S. Senate campaign is anxiously awaiting the decision from the California Court of Appeals on whether the former First Lady and current Democratic presidential frontrunner will be reinstated as a defendant in the multi-million dollar dispute.

Businessman Peter F. Paul filed the lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court in 2004 to recover the expenditures he says he made to finance the fundraiser held in Hollywood in August, 2000 as a celebrity oriented farewell salute to the then outgoing President Bill Clinton. The proceeds of the event were to go Mrs. Clinton's first New York senate campaign.

Paul, who now lives in Asheville, North Carolina, stated in his original complaint that he agreed to finance the event, which far exceeded what one person can legally contribute to a senate campaign, in exchange for the soon to be ex-chief executive agreeing to become the spokesperson for Paul's Internet animation company, Stan Lee Media.

That company, which Paul co-founded with the legendary comic book creator of such characters as Spiderman, the Hulk and Fantastic Four in 1998, was supposedly going to use the president once he left public office in 2001 as an international traveling mouthpiece to raise money for the company from potential investors across the globe to develop new show business projects.

The Hillary Clinton 2000 Senate Committee had made a public showing of their returning his $2000 cash donation to her campaign once the Washington Post revealed a week after the event occurred that Paul possessed a checkered past. But the businessman alleges he has never been re-imbursed for the million dollars plus of funds belonging to Stan Lee Media he claims he incurred by financing the costs of the show.

A three-judge panel of the Second Appellate District for the Court of Appeals heard oral arguments from both sides on September 7. They are expected to rule in the next few months on whether Mrs. Clinton will be re-instated as a defendant.