Donald Trump and Letitia James Find Common Ground

Former President Donald Trump's attorneys and New York Attorney General Letitia James' team found rare common ground in the $370 million civil trial that could bar Trump from doing business in the state for life.

Judge Arthur Engoron had asked both sides on Tuesday to respond to recent media reports that former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg is in talks to strike a plea deal with a different law enforcement office, one that would involve Weisselberg admitting that he committed perjury during Trump's fraud trial by lying on the stand.

Wednesday filings from both Trump's defense and James' office asked the judge not to consider the latest news about Weisselberg while making his verdict.

James' office told Engoron that the potential guilty plea "should not delay a final decision and judgment imposing remedial measures in this law enforcement proceeding," while Cliff Robert, an attorney for the Trump family and properties, called Engoron's request for comment "unprecedented, inappropriate and troubling."

"It is inconceivable that the Court would not apply falsus in uno to Mr. Cohen's testimony, while musing on its applicability based on a speculative news story," Robert said.

Engoron said that although Weisselberg allegedly lied about the size of the Trump Tower penthouse, the former Trump executive's testimony on other topics could also be called into question, including everything he said in defense of the Trump Organization. The judge warned he could even "use this as a basis to invoke falsus in uno," referring to the Latin phrase that represents the legal principle, "false in one thing, false in everything."

Kevin Wallace, an assistant attorney general for James' office, said prosecutors were not involved in the speculated plea deal, nor the specific testimony that was subject to negotiations, but that they would not be surprised if Weisselberg lied on the stand.

"The fact that a defendant who lacks credibility and has already been to prison for falsifying business documents may have also perjured himself in this proceeding or the preceding investigation is hardly surprising," Wallace said. However, he concluded that the office "does not, however, believe that this development should result in any delay of a final decision."

Wallace also noted that negotiations over a potential plea deal "could go on indefinitely," and that if Weisselberg doesn't reach an agreement with prosecutors, "a trial on any potential perjury charges would take even longer."

"Delaying the final determination in this action to await the outcome of plea negotiations would have the perverse effect of rewarding Defendants if Mr. Weisselberg is indeed guilty of perjury," he said.

Even though James' team's response to Engoron's request was essentially the same as the one from Trump's lawyers, one of his attorneys claimed that the attorney general's office orchestrated the plea deal to undermine the trial.

"Court decisions are supposed to be made based on the evidence at trial, not on media speculation," Chris Kise told the Hill. "But realizing they have no actual evidence to support their relentless and unjustifiable pursuit of President Trump, Alvin Bragg and Letitia James have now conspired together to create a media frenzy and use it as support for their claims."

The fraud trial wrapped up last month after 11 weeks of proceedings. Engoron already determined that the former president committed fraud by inflating his assets and net worth ahead of the trial, but has yet to issue a decision on how much Trump will have to pay the state or whether the former president can still do business in New York. The verdict is expected to come any day.