Justice Arthur Engoron’s decisive ruling in New York state court, specifically in Manhattan, will streamline the process for State Attorney General Letitia James to prove damages during the upcoming trial set for October 2nd. This ruling enhances the Attorney General’s ability to demonstrate the extent of harm caused.

Judge Engoron also directed the revocation of licenses that permitted certain Trump enterprises, such as the Trump Organization, to function in New York. Additionally, he mandated the designation of a receiver to oversee the dissolution process of these businesses.

The judge explained how Trump, along with his adult sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, the Trump Organization, and other defendants, fabricated appraisals and exaggerated Trump’s financial worth for their business purposes.

Engoron stated that the aforementioned scenario belongs to a realm of imagination rather than reality.

The judge also penalized the attorneys representing the defendants for presenting “ridiculous” legal claims and contributing to their clients’ disruptive behavior.

Trump and the other parties involved are asserting that they did not engage in any fraudulent activities and that the transactions in question yielded profits. They intend to challenge Engoron’s ruling and file an appeal.

In a statement, Christopher Kise, an attorney representing Trump, expressed his strong disagreement with the current decision, stating that it lacks any connection to the facts and governing law. Kise emphasized that President Trump and his family will exhaust all possible legal avenues to address what they perceive as an unfair judicial outcome.

James expressed her anticipation of presenting the remaining aspects of her case during the trial.

Bill Black, an esteemed expert in financial regulation from the University of Minnesota Law School, stated that the ruling has significant implications. He emphasized that revoking business certificates could potentially undermine Trump’s financial prospects.

“If the decision is upheld, they have to liquidate the LLCs which actually hold the enormous bulk of the assets”

Bill Black, scholar in residence for financial regulation at the University of Minnesota Law School

Trump is actively pursuing the Republican presidential nomination for the year 2024 and continues to hold a significant advantage in the competition, despite facing criminal allegations in various legal proceedings.

In a statement shared on his Truth Social platform, Trump vehemently dismissed the allegations of fraud, asserting that they are both baseless and absurd. Additionally, he criticized Judge Engoron, labeling him as biased and under the influence of James, a member of the Democratic party.

This is a case of Democratic political warfare and an unprecedented level of witch-hunting, Trump said. He further emphasized, “If they can do this to me, they can do this to YOU!”

Trump has continuously claimed, without substantiating evidence, that the charges he confronts are baseless and unjust investigations.

NOT ‘IMMATERIAL’

James filed a lawsuit against Trump in September 2022, alleging that he, along with three of his adult children and the Trump Organization, engaged in a decade-long deception regarding the valuation of assets and his net worth. This alleged deception was purportedly done with the intention of defrauding banks and insurers in order to obtain more favorable terms.

James presented compelling evidence that substantiates the claim that Trump exaggerated his net worth by a significant margin, ranging from $812 million to $2.2 billion. This evidence can be regarded as conclusive, highlighting the tendency of Trump to overstate his financial standing.

“Even in the world of high finance, this court cannot endorse a proposition that finds a misstatement of at least $812 million dollars to be ‘immaterial,’”

Attorney General Letitia James

The judge declared that Trump’s appraisals were inflated, encompassing his Mar-a-Lago property in Florida, his luxurious residence in Trump Tower in Manhattan, and a range of office complexes and golf courses.

In regards to Trump’s assertion that the penthouse encompassed 30,000 square feet (2,787 square meters), which is nearly triple its true size, he expressed significant concern. This exaggerated measurement could potentially lead to misrepresentations in its valuation, resulting in an overestimate of up to $207 million.

Engoron expressed that a discrepancy of this order of magnitude, by a real estate developer sizing up his own living space of decades, can only be considered fraud.

The judge asserted that Donald Trump significantly inflated the value of Mar-a-Lago, suggesting it was worth up to $612.1 million. However, an assessor contradicted this assessment, stating that the market value of the property was only around $27.6 million.

The text provided highlights Engoron’s criticism of Trump’s defenses in a deposition, specifically pointing out that they lacked any factual basis. One of the defenses mentioned was Trump’s claim that there was nothing incorrect about his property valuations in a particular year, even if their values increased later on.

Engoron also reprimanded Trump for presenting defenses during a deposition that were completely unsupported, which included asserting that there was nothing flawed about his evaluation of properties during a specific year, despite their subsequent increase in value.

“He also seems to imply that the numbers cannot be inflated because he could find a ‘buyer from Saudi Arabia’ to pay any price he suggests,” the judge wrote.

SLEW OF LITIGATION

Engoron’s decision follows a determination made by a state appellate court three months ago, which stated that certain claims made by James were no longer valid due to the expiration of statutes of limitations in either July 2014 or February 2016.

Engoron dismissed Trump’s claim that the ruling effectively diminished James’ lawsuit, which she had maintained highlighted a sequence of ongoing injustices that she could substantiate during the trial.

The case saw one defendant, Ivanka Trump, being dismissed by the appeals court.

Trump is also confronted with numerous other legal actions.

The individual in question has entered a plea of innocence in relation to the charges outlined in four indictments. These charges include allegations of attempting to overturn the outcome of the 2020 election, in which he was defeated by Joe Biden, a Democrat. Additionally, the indictments accuse him of hoarding classified materials and concealing payments made to a porn star as part of a confidentiality agreement.

Trump is additionally confronted with a civil trial in January regarding the compensation he owes for defaming the writer E. Jean Carroll, who has accused him of rape. It is important to note that Trump has consistently denied any wrongdoing in this matter.

Engoron’s ruling does not guarantee that James’ fraudulent case will proceed to trial on the forthcoming Monday.

President Trump has taken legal action to postpone the trial, alleging that Engoron and James have disregarded the appeals court’s directive to limit the scope of the case.

The accused individuals, along with their co-defendants, have expressed the difficulty they faced in adequately preparing for the trial due to their lack of knowledge regarding the specific allegations they would be required to defend against.

The appeals court is anticipated to make a decision regarding the request for a postponement within the upcoming week.