(CNN) A federal judge in California said Friday that he needed to hear from President Donald Trump's attorney Michael Cohen directly before deciding whether to issue a stay in a civil lawsuit involving porn star Stormy Daniels.

Daniels wants to void a contract she signed days before the 2016 general election in which she agreed to stay quiet about her alleged 2006 affair with Trump. The White House has said Trump denies the affair.

Judge S. James Otero gave Cohen's attorney until Wednesday to file a declaration by Cohen himself indicating whether his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination could be at issue in the civil case due to an ongoing criminal investigation in New York.

Otero told Cohen attorney Brent Blakely that he'd heard enough arguments on Cohen's behalf.

"What's important here are Mr. Cohen's statements," Otero said, in a courtroom packed with dozens of journalists.

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