Hunter Biden appears in court for tax trial months after his conviction for gun possession

He is accused of avoiding at least $1.4 million (£1.06 million) in taxes over a four-year period while receiving millions of dollars from foreign companies.

He already faces prison time after a Delaware jury found him guilty in June of lying on a 2018 federal form to purchase a gun he owned for 11 days.

Hunter Biden entered the courtroom holding the hand of his wife, Melissa Cohen Biden, and accompanied by Secret Service agents.

He already faces prison time after a Delaware jury found him guilty in June of lying on a 2018 federal form to purchase a gun he owned for 11 days.

Hunter Biden has pleaded not guilty to charges related to his 2016-2019 taxes, and his lawyers have indicated they will argue he did not act “willfully” or with the intent to break the law, in part because of his well-documented struggle with alcohol and drug addiction.

U.S. District Judge Mark Scarsi, appointed by former President Donald Trump, has imposed some restrictions on what jurors can hear about the traumatic events that Hunter Biden's family, friends and lawyers say led to his drug addiction.

The judge barred lawyers from linking his struggle with drug addiction to the 2015 cancer death of his brother Beau Biden or the car accident that killed his mother and sister when he was a toddler.

He also rejected a proposed defense expert to testify on the subject of addiction.

The indictment alleges that Hunter Biden lived a lavish life while violating tax law by spending his money on things like strippers and luxury hotels – “in short, everything except his taxes.”

Hunter Biden's lawyers had asked Judge Scarsi to also prevent prosecutors from highlighting details of his spending that they said amounted to “reputation destruction,” including payments to strippers or pornographic websites.

In court documents, the judge said he would “strictly control” the presentation of potentially offensive evidence.

Meanwhile, prosecutors could provide more details about Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings, which are at the heart of Republican investigations into the Biden family that often seek – without evidence – to link the president to an alleged influence scheme.

The special investigator's team has announced that it will inform the jury about Hunter Biden's work for a Romanian businessman who attempted to “influence the policies of the US government” during Joe Biden's term as vice president.

The defense accused prosecutors of publishing details about Hunter Biden's work for the Romanian in court documents in order to boost media coverage and influence the jury.

The judge will ask a group of potential jurors a series of questions to determine whether they are suitable for jury duty. Among other things, he will consider whether their political views and knowledge of the case would prevent them from being impartial.

The verdict in the Hunter Biden case in Delaware is scheduled for November 13.

He faces up to 25 years in prison, but as a first-time offender he will likely receive a much shorter sentence or avoid prison altogether.