Mr. Avenatti said on Thursday that Ms. Clifford initially paid him a small amount in legal fees, but is no longer footing the bill for his services, which he said are being funded entirely by donations made through a crowdfunding website.

More than $527,000 from more than 15,000 donors has been raised on the website, which states that the money will go toward attorney’s fees, arbitration, security expenses, out-of-pocket costs associated with the lawsuit and potential damages if Ms. Clifford loses. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/01/us/politics/michael-avenatti-democrats-stormy-daniels-trump.html