Porn star Stormy Daniels set to give evidence in former US president Donald Trump hush money case

Donald Trump finds himself back in the courtroom facing potential jail time due to further violations of a gag order, as prosecutors prepare to summon prominent witnesses, including adult film actress Stormy Daniels.

Clark Brewster, representing Daniels, indicated that the actress, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, is likely to testify during the trial scheduled for Tuesday. Earlier on Tuesday, Trump expressed frustration at being informed last-minute about the witness, saying he should’ve been given more notice.

During the final stages of Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, his former lawyer and personal fixer, Michael Cohen, paid Daniels $130,000 to keep quiet about an alleged sexual encounter with Trump at a celebrity golf event in July 2006, which Trump denies.

Daniels' testimony, though possibly sanitised for the courtroom, is highly anticipated, as it represents a significant legal and political moment. While Trump's lawyer requested limitations on the details of the alleged encounter, prosecutors argued for their relevance to Daniels' credibility, eventually gaining approval for limited testimony from the judge.

The trial's focus has shifted between sensational elements and technical financial details, with recent testimony shedding light on the reimbursement process orchestrated by the Trump Organisation to conceal payments related to the hush money scandal.

Trump’s lawyer, Susan Necheles, asked that Daniels be barred from testifying about “the details” of the alleged sexual encounter. Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger said such details were relevant to her credibility but also offered reassurances that they would be “really basic”.

Judge Juan M Merchan agreed to permit limited testimony. Trump and his campaign were reeling from the October 7 2016, publication of the never-before-seen 2005 Access Hollywood footage in which he boasted about grabbing women’s genitals.

He spoke with Mr Cohen and Hope Hicks, his campaign’s press secretary, by phone the next day as they sought to limit damage from the tape and keep his alleged affairs out of the press.

Mr Cohen paid Daniels after her lawyer at the time, Keith Davidson, indicated she was willing to make on-the-record statements to the National Enquirer or on television confirming a sexual encounter with Trump.

National Enquirer editor Dylan Howard alerted Pecker and then, at Pecker’s direction, told Mr Cohen that Daniels was agitating to go public with her claims, prosecutors said.

Daniels had previously sought to sell her story to another celebrity gossip magazine, Life & Style, in 2011. The trial, the first of his four criminal cases to come before a jury, is expected to last another month or more.