Former U.S. President Donald Trump gestures while talking to the media during a break as he attends trial in a civil fraud case brought by state Attorney General Letitia James against him, his adult sons, the Trump Organization and others in New York City, October 4, 2023.
Mike Segar | Reuters
A New York appeals court on Friday refused to stay the ongoing civil business fraud trial of Donald Trump and his company, but did halt a judge’s order to cancel the business certificates of Trump’s companies in the state.
The ruling came after Trump’s business fraud trial ended its first week of proceedings in Manhattan Supreme Court.
New York Attorney General Letitia James had opposed halting Trump’s trial pending his appeal of a judge’s pretrial ruling that he was liable for business fraud in the case. But she did not oppose Trump’s request that the judge’s related ruling, which canceled an array of corporate business certificates, be stayed pending the outcome of the appeal.
James’ office said in a statement that the company certificates hadn’t been canceled yet and the AG’s office proposed putting someone in place to oversee that process, with possible names due later this month.
The ongoing trial is dealing with James’s $250 million lawsuit against Trump, the Trump Organization, his two adult sons and top company executives.
Christopher Kise, Trump’s lawyer, in a statement, said, “We are very pleased the First Department upheld New York law and put a halt to any cancellation of business certificates, receivers or dissolution. The trial court’s attempt to reach issues, entities and assets beyond the scope of this case has been suspended.”
“Unsurprisingly, he is twisting this ruling and falsely claiming victory for a resolution we proposed,” James said in a statement. “The truth is simple: a judge ruled that he committed repeated and persistent fraud, and we will continue to demonstrate that in court.”
Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron issued a summary judgment last month which found James had proven her central claim that the defendants had committed business fraud. Engoron had canceled the business certificates of Trump’s companies as part of that finding.
The trial is dealing with the remaining six claims in the suit.
Friday’s ruling staying the cancellations but allowing the trial to resume came from a justice in the appellate division that handles cases arising out of Manhattan Supreme Court.
— CNBC’s Kevin Breuninger contributed to this report
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