President Trump has asked New York’s highest court to dismiss the remaining findings and penalties in the state’s civil fraud case against him, arguing that the lawsuit brought by Attorney General Letitia James was legally flawed and politically motivated.
In a 119-page filing submitted Wednesday to the New York Court of Appeals, Trump’s attorneys described the case as an “unprecedented” use of the attorney general’s authority and urged the court to fully overturn it.
“This Court should put an end to this politically motivated action,” his lawyers wrote.
James filed the civil lawsuit in 2022, accusing Trump and his family business of inflating the value of their assets to secure more favorable loan and insurance terms. The case became one of the most significant legal challenges Trump has faced, threatening both his public image as a successful real estate developer and the future of the Trump Organization. It also elevated James as one of Trump’s most prominent political and legal adversaries.
The case has taken a complex path through the courts. After a bench trial, Judge Arthur Engoron found Trump liable for fraud and imposed a $464 million judgment, which grew to more than $500 million with interest. Engoron also barred Trump from serving in top roles at New York companies for three years, imposed two-year bans on his sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, and appointed an independent monitor to oversee the Trump Organization’s business practices.
However, a mid-level appellate court later struck down the financial penalty as excessive, removing the largest monetary consequence while leaving the liability finding and other restrictions in place. The appellate judges were sharply divided in their ruling.
Despite that partial victory, Trump’s legal team is now seeking to eliminate the remaining penalties and the underlying liability determination. His lawyers acknowledged the “unusual posture” of the appeal, since the prior ruling largely benefited him, but argued that the decision still rests on an “erroneous finding” that must be reversed.
“This unprecedented and legally unsound case is about far more than President Trump,” his lawyers said, arguing that James stretched a New York law targeting “persistent fraud or illegality” beyond its intended use.
“If left on the books, the mistaken legal rulings below threaten New York’s position as the Nation’s financial capital, as well as the State’s commercial real-estate industry,” they added.
The New York attorney general’s office, which has also appealed aspects of the appellate ruling, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The appeal comes amid a broader and highly contentious legal and political battle between Trump and James. During the period between Trump’s presidential terms, James secured a major civil fraud ruling against him, while Trump and his allies have repeatedly accused her of pursuing politically motivated cases.
More recently, Trump administration officials have sought to pursue criminal cases against James. She was indicted last fall on mortgage fraud allegations, but a federal judge dismissed the charges, finding that the prosecutor who brought the case had been unlawfully appointed. Prosecutors later sought two additional indictments, but grand juries declined to bring charges.
Trump’s latest appeal now asks the state’s highest court to bring the long-running civil case to a close by wiping out the remaining findings and penalties that continue to affect him and his business.
