Donald Trump will have to come up with hundreds of millions of dollars even if he appeals his New York defamation verdict and looming civil fraud trial, experts say, a “huge hit” to his wallet. There is a possibility that it will be given.
The former president will be required to pay $370 million in damages this month when a Manhattan judge hands down a verdict in a fraud case brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James over Trump Organization business dealings.
Last month, he was ordered by a federal jury in Manhattan to pay sexual assault accuser E. Jean Carroll $83 million for libel.
But even if the 77-year-old Trump appeals the verdict, legal experts say he will still have to pay a potential $453 million “promise,” or collateral, in the two lawsuits. It is said that it will not happen.
“If Trump’s wealth claims are to be believed, paying out a business of this size (plus interest) while the appellate court is pending is not financially viable,” said Melissa Levin, a New York civil attorney. should not be a problem for Mr. Trump,” he told the Post. Wednesday.
“However, given the actual numbers and facts we know about how much he is truly worth, this could be a major blow to the viability of his business and his personal financial stability.” ,” Levin added.
Under New York state law, if Mr. Trump contests the verdict, as his lawyers have indicated he intends to do, he could, for example, hand over all the money he owes Mr. Carroll to the courts until the appeal is resolved. It will have to be held in escrow.
Additionally, if you ultimately lose your appeal, you will have to pay a large amount of interest.
Mr. Levin and Imran Ansari, another Big Apple civil lawyer, said Mr. Trump may seek a bond to cover his finances, but that amount would not be cheap.
“Given the large size of the judgment, this would be a large bond backed by collateral and subject to significant fees and interest,” Ansari said.
If Trump has trouble raising cash or securing bonds, he could seek bankruptcy protection.
“But what complicates that choice and makes it unlikely for Mr. Trump at this point is that the bankruptcy filing will reveal Mr. Trump’s financial books, including assets and debts, and Mr. “Maybe he doesn’t want to make detailed information public,” Ansari said. “I’m running for president in the 2024 election.
James claimed in his civil fraud trial that the real estate mogul overstated his net worth by billions of dollars in annual financial statements over a 10-year period to get better loan and insurance terms.
Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron is expected to render a verdict in the non-jury trial by mid-February.
Ahead of the trial, a judge had already found Trump liable for one of the AG’s main fraud allegations and stripped Trump of his family’s real estate empire’s operating license. That portion of Engoron’s decision is pending appeal.
In addition to awarding President Trump $83 million for defaming an Ask E. Jean advice columnist in a public statement in June 2019, another jury last year found the 45th president sexually assaulted. The court found Mr. Carroll responsible for the abuse and ordered him to pay $5 million. and defamation for his remarks in October 2022.
Trump is appealing Carroll’s first case.
The embattled former commander-in-chief also faces four criminal cases in separate states, the first of which was filed in Manhattan on March 25 over alleged “hush money” payments. It’s scheduled to start.
President Trump has maintained his innocence and called the criminal and civil cases against him a politically motivated “witch hunt.”
