On Wednesday, New York Attorney General Letitia James urged an appeals court to reject former President Donald Trump’s plea to lessen or delay the payment of the $454 million bond, which is meant to cover a civil fraud judgment.
On Monday, Trump’s lawyers stated that in order to temporarily halt the enforcement of the judgment, Trump needs to provide a liquid bond, such as cash or securities, that covers the entire amount. However, they revealed that 30 surety companies have informed Trump that they won’t accept real estate assets as collateral.
If Trump fails to come up with the $454 million bond, Letitia James may pursue freezing some of his bank accounts and properties. Enforcement proceedings against Trump could begin as soon as March 25th.
On Wednesday, lawyers representing the State of New York contended that Trump had not thoroughly explored all avenues to post bond. They urged the court to dismiss Trump’s plea to delay collection without bond while his legal team navigates the appeals process.
As reported by the Associated Press:
The attorneys wrote that “it is not possible under the circumstances presented.” They said underwriters insisted on cash or other liquid assets instead of real estate as collateral, which would have to cover 120% of the judgment, or more than $557 million.
Insurance broker Gary Giulietti — a Trump golf buddy who handles some of his company’s insurance needs and testified for him in the fraud trial — wrote in a sworn statement that “a bond of this size is rarely, if ever, seen.” The few provided go to huge public companies, Giulietti said. Trump’s company is private.
But Fan, the lawyer in the attorney general’s office, wrote Wednesday that “there is nothing unusual about even billion-dollar judgments being fully bonded on appeal,” citing a handful of cases. They largely involved publicly traded companies.
Trump insists that the legal actions taken against him constitute interference in the election process.
“Judge Engoron actually wants me to put up Hundreds of Millions of Dollars for the Right to Appeal his ridiculous decision,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “In other words, he is trying to take my Appellate Rights away from me when I have already won at the Appellate Division, but he refuses to accept their already made decision.”
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