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Former President Donald Trump is being accused of inflating his net worth by up to $2.2 billion per year by New York State Attorney General Letitia James.
James filed a $250 million civil lawsuit against The Trump Organization, the ex-president and three of his adult children last year, accusing them of misrepresenting business assets to obtain favorable loans and tax benefits. An appeals court decision removed the former president's daughter Ivanka Trump from the list of defendants in June.
In a court filing on Wednesday, James said that the evidence against Trump was so strong that a trial, set to begin in October, was not needed for the court to determine guilt of fraud. The motion for summary judgment argues that "undisputed evidence" shows "that defendants presented grossly and materially inflated asset values" from 2011 to 2021.
"Since at least 2011, Defendants and others working on their behalf at the Trump Organization have falsely inflated by billions of dollars the value of many of the assets listed on Donald J. Trump's annual statement of financial condition ("SFC"), and hence his overall net worth for each of these years," the motion states.
"Blatant and obvious deceptive practices engaged in by Defendants reduces Mr. Trump's net worth by between 17-39% in each year, or between $812 million to $2.2 billion, depending on the year," it continues.
James' filing goes on to allege that Trump used false financial statements to "defraud banks and insurers," arguing "there can be no serious doubt" that the former president's "fraudulent conduct was both repeated and persistent."
Chris Kise, who is representing Trump in the New York lawsuit and in the federal criminal case regarding classified documents, sent Newsweek the following statement via email on Wednesday night in response to a request for comment:
"The nyag claims are long on hyperbole and short on actual evidence. the motion ignores the extraordinary volune [sic] of evidence establishing the net worth numbers were well substantiated. it also ignores the testimony of the actual counterparties to the loan transactions who stated plainly there was no fraud. yet the attorney general still wants to substitute what i am sure is her keen business acumen for that of some of the most sophisticated bankers in the world."
Kise and other lawyers representing the former president and The Trump Organization filed their own motion for summary judgment on Wednesday, arguing that the suit should be dismissed, partly due to the statute of limitations having expired on many of the claims.
Trump's team also argued that "all this debate surrounding President Trump's net worth is unnecessary" because the alleged inflation of assets may not have impacted the loans in question and "it is simply undisputed he was and is an extraordinarily successful multi-billionaire."
New York State Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron could rule partially or wholly in favor of the motions from either James or Trump. Alternatively, he could decide to dismiss both motions and simply move forward with the trial as scheduled.
Trump's civil lawsuit is separate from the four criminal proceedings against the former president. Trump is facing a total of 91 felony counts in New York, Georgia and at the federal level.
The former president denies any criminal or civil wrongdoing, claiming to be the victim of a "witch hunt" and "election interference" while campaigning as the leading GOP candidate in the 2024 presidential election.
About the writer
Aila Slisco is a Newsweek night reporter based in New York. Her focus is on reporting national politics, where she ... Read more