Donald Trump Appeals $454M Civil Fraud Ruling Amid 2024 Election Prep

(CTN News) – Donald Trump is appealing a New York judge’s decision that he must pay $454 million (£360 million) in fines and interest for a civil fraud case.

This month’s judgment was $355 million, but it has increased due to interest, which will continue to accrue at a rate of at least $112,000 every day.

New York Attorney General Letitia James has stated that if Donald Trump does not pay, she will attempt to confiscate some of his assets.

He was found to have overstated property prices to get better credit conditions.

Judge Arthur Engoron also prohibited the former US president from conducting business in the state for three years.

The Republican frontrunner’s appeal on Monday means another legal issue will linger into election season as he prepares for a rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden in November.

Donald Trump has already stated that he intended to challenge the verdict, referring to it as a political witch-hunt.

His lawyer, Alina Habba, stated on Monday that they hope the appeals court “will overturn this egregious fine and take the necessary steps to restore public faith in New York’s legal system.”

The attorneys asked the appeal division to evaluate if Judge Engoron’s court “committed errors of law and/or fact” and whether it “abused its discretion” or “acted in excess of its jurisdiction” in their court filing.

The former president’s lawyers have also claimed that he was wrongfully sued under a consumer protection act designed to punish businesses that defraud customers.

Donald Trump’s legal team has previously contested Judge Engoron’s orders on at least ten occasions, including a gag order.

The appeals procedure could last a year or more.

Mr Trump may be granted a stay of execution of the verdict provided he provides money, assets, or an appeal bond in the amount owing. It is unknown which route he will choose.

Mr. Trump’s two adult sons and co-defendants, Donald Jr. and Eric, were ordered to pay $4 million each and forbidden from doing business in New York for two years. They insisted there was no wrongdoing and supported their father’s appeal on Monday.

Adding to the impact on his monetary reserves, the former president was forced to pay $83 million last month after losing a defamation action against E Jean Carroll, a woman he was determined to have sexually abused.

In May 2023, he lost a case against the New York Times and was compelled to pay the legal fees of the reporters he sued. On Monday, Susanne Craig, one of the reporters in the case, tweeted that Mr Trump had made the required $392,600 payment.

According to Forbes, Mr Trump is worth approximately $2.6 billion. It is unclear how much cash he has on hand, although he testified last year that he has $400 million in liquid assets.

The civil trial began in October and was primarily concerned with assessing sanctions for Mr Trump, as Judge Engoron had previously found the former president responsible for commercial fraud.

He will face another case in his birthplace of New York City next month. In those criminal proceedings, Mr Trump is accused of falsifying business records to hide hush money paid to an adult film star before the 2016 election.

The Manhattan prosecutor pursuing the case on Monday requested a gag order against Donald Trump.

The district attorney’s office stated that such a measure was necessary to protect jurors, witnesses, and court personnel from Donald Trump’s “long history of making public and inflammatory remarks.”

Donald Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung described the request as an “unconstitutional infringement” on Mr Trump’s rights.

He repeated the former president’s argument that the indictments against him are partisan efforts to block his re-election.