Global Courant
The New York court limits transactions that the attorney general can sue based on statutes of limitations.
A New York appeals court has narrowed the scope of a civil suit accusing former President Donald Trump and his family of “staggering” fraud.
On Tuesday, the court said New York Attorney General Letitia James must exclude transactions that took place before July 13, 2014 or February 6, 2016, depending on the defendant, from her lawsuit. The court also rejected claims against Trump’s daughter Ivanka.
The Appellate Division in Manhattan said James has the authority to sue for “repeated or persistent fraud or illegality,” but that the allegations against Ivanka were too old and should have been dismissed.
James first filed suit against Trump in September, accusing the Trump Organization of “numerous acts of fraud and misrepresentation.” The lawsuit seeks $250 million in damages and proposes to ban the Trumps from doing business in New York.
“Trump has illegally inflated and reduced his net worth by billions in various ways to obtain and pay off loans, get insurance benefits and pay lower taxes,” James said at the time. “Basically, he lied to gain huge financial benefits for himself.”
The suit initially named Trump’s daughter Ivanka and two of his sons, Donald Jr. and Eric.
Trump testified in the case in April. On the day of his statement, he wrote in a social media post on Truth Social that he had done nothing wrong and denounced James’ “persecution” of him. He also said the suit would be an opportunity to show he’s built a “great, profitable and valuable business.”
Trump’s lawyer Christopher Kise also accused James of attempting to “interfere” in private matters during oral argument earlier this month.
Trump had met with James’ lawyers for testimony earlier in August, but largely refused to answer questions beyond a handful of procedural matters. The trial is expected to begin in October at the state Supreme Court in Manhattan.
Tuesday’s decision to limit the civil suit came as the former president faced a long list of legal troubles, from federal charges that he mishandled classified documents to charges of falsifying business records.
A panel in Georgia is also investigating Trump’s alleged attempts to reverse the results of the 2020 election by asking officials in the key swing state to “find” enough votes for him to reverse his loss.
And Trump also faces an ongoing libel lawsuit from the writer E Jean Carroll. A grand jury previously ruled in favor of Carroll in a separate lawsuit, finding Trump liable for sexual assault and libel.
Trump, the Republican front-runner in the 2024 presidential race, has dismissed his numerous legal troubles as a plot orchestrated by his rivals to derail his candidacy.
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