A New York appeals court has agreed to temporarily halt the collection of former President Donald Trump’s $454 million civil fraud judgment, provided he posts a $175 million bond within 10 days. That’s $279 million less than the total amount.
This decision prevents the state from seizing Trump’s assets while he appeals the judgment. Plus, it reverses parts aspects of a previous ruling that had barred Trump and his sons, Eric and Donald Jr., from serving in corporate leadership roles for several years.
The ruling is a significant victory for Trump as he defends his real estate empire, which propelled him into public life and eventually the presidency.
New York Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat, was expected to initiate efforts to collect the judgment later on Monday.
Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that he would post the required bond. He described the original judgment as politically motivated, and he criticized it as “ridiculous and outrageous.”
He also posted that he would be holding a press conference on Wall Street at 1 p.m. Tuesday.
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After Monday’s ruling, James has emphasized that Trump still owes the full $454 million. It’s just that the collection is paused.
“Donald Trump is still facing accountability for his staggering fraud. The court has already found that he engaged in years of fraud to falsely inflate his net worth and unjustly enrich himself, his family, and his organization,” the office said in a statement.
President Joe Biden has gloated over the judgment against Trump.
Biden’s campaign has nicknamed him “broke Don,” and the president himself said at a speech in Dallas last week, “Just the other day a defeated-looking man came up to me and said, ‘Mr. President, I have crushing debt, and I’m completely wiped out.’ And I had to look at him and say, “Donald, I’m sorry. I can’t help you.”
The $454 million judgment stems from a civil trial last fall, where the state alleged that Trump, his company, and top executives vastly inflated his wealth on financial statements to con bankers and insurers. Trump and his co-defendants denied any wrongdoing, arguing that the statements came with disclaimers and weren’t taken at face value by the institutions that lent to or insured him.
Judge Arthur Engoron sided with the attorney general and ordered Trump to pay $355 million, plus interest, while his sons and a company executive were ordered to pay smaller amounts. Monday’s ruling puts these payments on hold if the $175 million bond is posted.
Trump’s lawyers had argued that it was impossible for him to post a bond covering the entire judgment, as underwriters wanted 120% of the amount and wouldn’t accept real estate as collateral. Trump would have needed to produce $557 million in cash, stocks, and other liquid assets, which Trump has described as necessary for his company to run its business.
The Horn editorial team and the Associated Press contributed to this article.