A civil trial stemming from a multi-million dollar fraud lawsuit targeting Donald Trump, his adult sons and chief associates will likely proceed next week after a New York appeals court rejected a last-ditch attempt to stall the hearings amid a mountain of criminal and civil cases facing the former president.
The two-page appellate court decision on 28 September dismissed Mr Trump’s lawsuit against the judge presiding over his case in an effort to stall the civil trial’s start date on 2 October.
A ruling comes just days after the judge’s blockbuster decision finding Mr Trump and others liable for more than a decade of fraud after a years-long investigation from the state attorney general.
A bench trial could begin as soon as Monday. Judge Arthur F Engoron will preside without a jury.
His scathing order on 26 September granted a partial judgment in favour of Letitia James, whose blockbuster lawsuit alleges Mr Trump and his business empire defrauded banks and insurers by grossly overvaluing assets and exaggerating his net worth on documents to secure deals and financing.
Judge Engoron has ordered several of the former president’s licences to be rescinded, effectively upending his abilities to do business in the state. An independent monitor also will continue to oversee compliance with the order and Mr Trump’s operations and liabilities to lenders, insurers and others.
The judgment resolved key claims in the lawsuit, which the former president’s legal team has repeatedly tried to dismiss and delay, and delivered a significant legal blow to his campaign as he seeks the Republican nomination for president in 2024 while facing four separate criminal indictments and an upcoming civil trial for defamation.
His legal team returned to court on Wednesday to determine the remaining issues in the case.
“Don’t take this the wrong way,” Trump attorney Christopher Kise asked the judge on Wednesday, “but what in the court’s mind does this trial look like?”
Ms James’s office does not intend to drop any of the remaining counts in the case.
In her only public statement following the judge’s decision, Ms James simply stated that Judge Engoron ruled in her favour, and “we look forward to presenting the rest of our case at trial.”
Mr Trump – who has repeatedly characterised the state’s chief prosecutor, who is Black, as a “racist” – has called the judge “deranged” and denied any wrongdoing.
