Stephen Gutierrez was in the middle of arguing that his client’s car combusted spontaneously and was not intentionally set alight.

But he had barely begun when smoke began to billow out of his trouser pocket and he was rushed from the room, the Miami Herald reports.

Observers say he was fiddling with something in his pocket beforehand.

Gutierrez, 28, insists that the incident was not a botched defence demonstration but a malfunction of his e-cigarette, which was resting in his pocket. Police are currently investigating the fire.

Meanwhile, his client - Claudy Charles, 48 - was convicted of second-degree arson once the trial resumed.