Federal prosecutors on special counsel Robert Mueller’s team estimate its upcoming case against former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort will last less than three weeks, a shorter timeline than initially anticipated.
In a joint court filing Friday, prosecutors wrote it “anticipates that its case-in-chief will last approximately ten to twelve trial days.”
Mueller’s team estimated in November it would need a full three weeks, or 15 days, to present its case.
The government could present up to 1,500 exhibits during the course of the trial, it said in Friday’s court filing.
Manafort’s lawyers, meanwhile, said it has not yet determined whether it will mount a defense. However, if it chooses to do so, a case from Manafort’s team will last up to four days.
If the defense does present a case, Manafort’s lawyers said it would call expert witnesses in the fields of money laundering and the Foreign Agent’s Registration Act.
Manafort is facing charges of money laundering, obstruction of justice, conspiring against the United States, and failing to register as a foreign agent, among others, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
His trial there is scheduled to begin Sept. 17. Manafort has pleaded not guilty.
The trial in Washington comes weeks after a jury in Alexandria, Va., convicted Manafort on eight counts of tax and bank fraud. He was found guilty of filing false tax returns, failing to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts, and bank fraud.
Manafort faced 18 counts total, but the judge declared a mistrial on the remaining 10 counts.
Federal prosecutors have until Aug. 29 to decide whether to retry Manafort on the counts where the jury could not reach consensus.
[Opinion: Manafort split verdict says nothing on Trump, Russia, and the 2016 election]
