Trump lawyers say he cannot pay $454m bond in fraud trial

New York — Former US president Donald Trump is unable to post a full bond while he appeals a $454.2m judgment that a judge imposed in New York state’s civil fraud case against him, and wants instead to secure a $100m bond, his lawyers said on Wednesday.

Trump is appealing a February 16 decision by justice Arthur Engoron of the state court in Manhattan, which includes a three-year ban from serving in a top role at any New York company, or seeking loans from banks registered in the state.

Letitia James, the state’s attorney-general, sued Trump, the Trump Organization and other defendants in 2022, accusing them of overstating the value of Trump’s properties to inflate his net worth and obtain better loan and insurance terms.

In a filing with the Appellate Division, a mid-level appeals court, Trump’s lawyers asked to temporarily stay the judgment during his appeal, saying he would suffer “irreparable harm” if James were free to sell his real estate assets to raise capital.

The lawyers also said the “exorbitant and punitive amount of the judgment coupled with an unlawful and unconstitutional blanket prohibition on lending transactions would make it impossible to secure and post a complete bond”.

They said a $100m bond, together with Trump’s “vast” real estate holdings and ongoing oversight by the court-designated monitor for the Trump Organization, would be more than sufficient to secure the judgment.

In a separate filing, James opposed a stay, calling it “especially inappropriate” given the defendants “all but concede” that Trump does not have enough liquid assets to satisfy the judgment.

“These are precisely the circumstances for which a full bond or deposit is necessary, where defendants’ approach would leave (the attorney-general’s office) with substantial shortfalls once this court affirms the judgment,” she wrote.

Risk of evasion

James also said there was “substantial risk” that Trump might not pay up, or might move assets beyond her reach, if he lost his appeal.

She cited the defendants’ having “surreptitiously” concealed from the monitor a $40m transfer, and Trump’s recent announcement that some of his businesses had moved to Florida.

Trump has estimated his net worth in the billions of dollars, but much of that is in real estate, not cash.

Engoron imposed a $354.9m penalty against Trump, plus daily interest that began to accrue in 2019. The payout had grown to $454.2m with interest by February 22, and additional interest is tacked on each day.

A bonding company would be on the hook for any payout if Trump lost his appeal and proved unable to pay.

It might have difficulty collecting if Trump, the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, reclaimed the White House from Democrat Joe Biden.

Trump is also seeking to avoid posting a full bond during an expected appeal of last month’s $83.3m defamation verdict in favour of the writer E Jean Carroll.

He has asked the judge in that case to let him appeal without posting any security, or alternatively by posting at most a $24.5m unsecured bond.

Reuters