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Former President Donald Trump took to social media on Monday to plead to the highest courts or the federal system to take action amid New York State Attorney General Letitia James' civil fraud suit against him.
James filed the suit last year against the Trump Organization, the former president and three of his adult children, accusing them of misrepresenting business assets to obtain favorable loans and tax benefits. His daughter, Ivanka Trump, was removed from the list of defendants following an appeals court ruling in June.
The trial, scheduled to begin October 2, was temporarily paused last week after Trump sued James and New York State Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron, who is presiding over the case, according to the New York Times.
On Monday, Trump took to his social media platform Truth Social to voice frustration with James, saying in part: "I have been unfairly sued by the Trump Hating Democrat Attorney General of New York State, Letitia James, over the false fact that I inflated my Financial Statements in order to borrow money from Banks, etc.
"The Judge in the case, Arthur F. Engoron, refused to allow this case to go to the 'Commercial Division,' where it belongs, because he is a Trump Hater beyond even A.G. James, who campaigned against me spewing horrible inflammatory statements which are False & Defamatory."
Trump then asked for help from the courts saying: "It is a great company that has been slandered and maligned by this politically motivated Witch Hunt. It is very unfair, and I call for help from the highest Courts in New York State, or the Federal System, to intercede. This is not America!"
As part of the Trump's lawsuit, his lawyers said that the June ruling on Ivanka Trump should effectively toss out the claims against him. James' team has argued that it has little effect on the accusation at the heart of her case, that Trump overstated his net worth by billions of dollars in his annual financial statements.
James' office called Trump's lawsuit brazen and meritless, saying in court papers that it reflected a complete misunderstanding of the June appeals court decision.
Engoron is expected to issue his ruling by Tuesday regarding which of James' claims can proceed to trial. Following his ruling, the appeals court is expected to rule on Trump's lawsuit by Thursday, a spokesman for the New York State Court system told the New York Times.
Jonathan Turley, a criminal defense attorney and legal analyst, told Newsweek on Monday, that even if the appeal delays this trial, Trump has other pending legal battles to think about.
"The appeal could delay the trial. The problem is that Trump has a rather full dance card with prosecutors and civil litigants. The movement of the trial date could collide with other pending matters," Turley said.
In addition to the lawsuit from James and other civil court matters, the ex-president faces 91 felony criminal charges across four separate indictments.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges while claiming that all of his legal woes are part of an orchestrated "witch hunt" by his political enemies.
About the writer
Natalie Venegas is a Weekend Reporter at Newsweek based in New York. Her focus is reporting on education, social justice ... Read more