Letitia James Wants to Block Trump From Leaving New York

New York Attorney General Letitia James is asking a judge to block Donald Trump from changing his business address from New York to Florida, arguing that his executives "carry out the business activities" of the Trump Organization at Manhattan's Trump Tower.

In a Thursday letter, James urged Judge Arthur Engoron to "reject Defendants' attempt to change the business address of the six entity Defendants to Florida as the record establishes those entities are located in Trump Tower at 725 5th Avenue in New York, the office building in which the executives who carry out the business activities of those entities work."

Trump owes New York state almost $454 million, including interest, after a civil fraud trial on charges that he inflated his wealth on financial statements to deceive banks, insurers and others. Engoron handed down a nearly $355 million verdict last Friday, but that figure goes up $87,502 every day that the former president doesn't cover the bill. James has said she plans to seize some of Trump's assets if he fails to pay.

"If he does not have funds to pay off the judgment, then we will seek judgment enforcement mechanisms in court, and we will ask the judge to seize his assets," James told ABC News on Thursday.

On Wednesday, Trump's attorneys had asked Engoron to delay enforcing the multi-million dollar judgment against him for a month, accusing James of an "unseemly rush" by asking the judge to sign off on a proposal judgment just days after the ruling. Trump has 30 days from when a judgment is entered to post bond and appeal.

His legal team also told the court that several of the addresses for Trump in James' proposed judgment were incorrect and included "proper address" for those entities, all of which were in Florida. The addresses listed included the Mar-a-Lago estate, the Trump National Golf Club in Jupiter and the Trump National Doral Miami.

Engoron's decision not only hit Trump with a $355 million verdict, plus interest but also barred him from acting as an officer of a New York business for three years.

Should Trump appeal the judgment, which he has signaled he plans to do, it is likely to be a costly fight. Even before he files an appeal, Trump would have to deposit the full amount he's been ordered to pay into a court account under New York law. Due to the size of the award, he's expected to obtain a bond, which would have him paying somewhere in the $400 million range even before he appeals.

Update 2/22/24, 1:47 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.