Aiexpress – In a recent development, a New York appeals court judge has rejected a request made by former President Donald Trump’s legal team to postpone the enforcement of the hefty $464 million judgment against him, his sons, and his company. This decision comes as a blow to Trump and his associates, as they had hoped to delay the enforcement of the judgment.
Instead of the statutorily required full amount, Trump’s lawyers had requested the judge to allow him to post a $100 million bond.
Justice Anil C. Singh, in a concise ruling following an emergency hearing, denied the request to decrease the bond amount made by the Trumps. However, he did grant other requests put forth by the Trumps, which included the permission to continue borrowing money. The lawyers representing Trump had contended that the restriction was impeding their endeavors to post a bond.
Singh’s order is temporary until a full panel of appeals court judges reviews the case.
Trump’s attorneys filed a document on Wednesday with the state Appellate Division, expressing that it would be “impossible” for the billionaire to pay the complete sum due to the limitations outlined in Judge Arthur Engoron’s ruling. Engoron presided over the civil fraud case initiated by New York Attorney General Letitia James.
“The filing stated that the excessive and punitive nature of the Judgment, along with an illegal and unconstitutional ban on lending transactions, would render it extremely difficult to obtain and submit a full bond. However, the appellants remain committed to acquiring and submitting a bond worth $100 million.”
According to Trump attorney Clifford Robert, if they don’t get the reduction, they would probably have to pay a bond amount that exceeds the $464 million judgment. In the filing, he mentioned that to cover post-judgment interest and appeal costs, a surety often sets the bond at 120% or more of the judgment amount. This would mean a total bond amount well over $500 million.
Without a stay on the reduced bond amount, Trump’s lawyers argue that “properties would likely need to be sold to raise capital under exigent circumstances, and there would be no way to recover any property sold following a successful appeal and no means to recover the resulting financial losses from the Attorney General.”
James’ office objected to the request.
Senior Assistant Solicitor General Dennis Fan, on behalf of James, dismissed the defendants’ argument that a full bond or deposit is unnecessary because they are willing to post a partial undertaking of less than a quarter of the judgment amount.
According to Fan’s filing, the defendants have essentially admitted that Mr. Trump doesn’t have enough cash on hand to cover the judgment. They would need to “raise capital” in order to do so. Given these circumstances, Fan argues that a full bond or deposit is necessary. The filing further states that there is a significant risk that the defendants may try to evade enforcement of the judgment or make enforcement more difficult after the appeal.
Last week, the court officially entered the $464 million judgment, signaling the start of a 30-day period for Trump to post a bond in order to halt any collection efforts by James’ office. This substantial amount encompasses the prejudgment interest that accumulated on Engoron’s verdict of over $350 million against Trump and the Trump Organization. The judgment was based on their practice of inflating their assets to secure bank loans with unjustifiable interest rates. If left unpaid, the interest will continue to accrue at a staggering rate of over $114,000 per day until it is settled or if Trump’s appeal is successful.
Singh’s order established a swift briefing schedule for Trump’s stay motion, requiring all final filings to be submitted by March 18. This means that there is a chance the full court could take action prior to Trump being required to file the bond.
Trump’s attorneys argued in their filing on Wednesday that the judgment delivered by Engoron should have been significantly reduced to around $100 million. They claimed that there were numerous errors in the judgment, and that a substantial portion of the disgorgement amount, specifically over $350 million out of the total of nearly $465 million, should be barred due to the statute of limitations.
According to the Attorney General’s office, the judge has already dismissed those arguments and it is expected that the appeals court will do the same.
Last week, Trump’s lawyers filed his notice of appeal in the case. They stated their intention for the court to assess whether Engoron made any errors of law or fact, and if he abused his discretion or exceeded his jurisdiction in delivering the judgment. In their filing on Wednesday, they described the judgment as “staggering.”
In New York federal court, Trump is currently dealing with a similar issue. Just recently, he was slapped with a staggering $83 million defamation verdict. On February 8, the judgment was officially entered, and now he faces the pressure of posting a bond within the next 30 days. Time is running out for him in this case.
In a recent court filing on Friday, Donald Trump’s legal team has requested the judge overseeing the defamation case to grant an extension for the time period in which he is required to post a bond. The request is to extend the deadline until 30 days after his post-trial motions, aimed at reducing the size of the verdict, are decided. Alternatively, they propose allowing him to post a bond in a fraction of the amount of the judgment.
U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan, in a recent ruling, stated that he will not make a decision on the matter until he has heard from E. Jean Carroll, the writer who claims to have been defamed by Trump. Kaplan emphasized the importance of giving the plaintiff a fair chance to present their arguments before granting any kind of stay, particularly an unsecured one.
Carroll’s legal team is anticipated to provide a response by Thursday, following which Trump’s lawyers will be given a two-day window to counter their arguments.
During his deposition in the civil fraud case on April 13, Trump confidently declared, “We possess a significant amount of cash. I firmly believe that we have well over 400 million in cash, which is quite substantial for a developer. Typically, developers do not have cash readily available; instead, they have assets. However, in our case, we currently have over 400 million in cash, and this amount continues to increase significantly each month.”
According to a statement of financial condition presented in 2021, Trump claimed to possess approximately $293.8 million in “cash and cash equivalents.” However, the AG’s office clarified that this amount includes $93 million in non-liquid assets. Trump’s net worth, as stated in the financial statement, was estimated to be around $4.5 billion.
According to the speaker, he stated, “If I wanted to demonstrate a strong statement, I might have considered adding around $10 billion to enhance the brand.”
