The Arkansas woman suing former vice president Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden for child support on Monday accused him of needlessly delaying the trial, according to a new court filing.
Lawyers for Lunden Alexis Roberts are crying foul after Biden declared himself "unable to appear" for a scheduled Tuesday hearing that Biden himself set the date for. The filing asks the court to deny Biden's motion to reschedule the hearing.
"The defendant has provided no documentation or factual basis to support his allegation that he is suddenly 'unable to appear on January 7, 2020,'" reads the Monday filing to the Circuit Court of Independence County, Ark. "He has not provided vouched plane tickets or stated the reasons why he is unable to appear on Tuesday."
The lawyers also point out that Biden "has stated multiple times that he is unemployed," which eliminates the possibility that a "work obligation" is keeping him from appearing for the hearing.
The Jan. 7 hearing was scheduled a month earlier on Dec. 2, 2019, after Biden's request for a seal on all documents in the case was denied.
Biden's lawyers responded in a subsequent Monday filing, arguing the delay is justified because Biden "has not received proper notice" of the hearing. The filing argues that because the original judge in the case, Judge Don McSpadden, abruptly recused himself, Biden is entitled to more time. The filing also says Biden needs to delay because he "resides in California."
Lawyers for Roberts allege that Biden is avoiding the hearing because he is unwilling to provide financial information for fear it will be made available to the public.
"[Biden] has used his carte blanche need for a protective order as a basis for refusing to disclose basic information about his income or assets," the filing states. "The defendant has been clear that he will not provide his financial information or basic information about his income until his motion for a protective order is heard by the Court."
Biden, a former government lobbyist, earned more than $50,000 a month to sit on the board of Ukrainian energy giant Burisma from April 2014 to April 2019. He was also recently revealed to have purchased a home worth $2.5 million in Hollywood Hills, Calif. The Monday filing contends that Biden may have assets in excess of $156 million.
Roberts first filed her lawsuit in May, seeking a court declaration that Biden is the father of her one-year-old son and child support. Biden was previously accused of evading service of the lawsuit and for months declined to take the DNA test that ultimately revealed he was indeed the father of the child.
Biden's lawyer Brent Langdon did not respond to a request for comment on whether he and his client will attend the Tuesday hearing.