Trump has until Monday to secure $464M bond or else face the possibility of James beginning to seize assets
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Lawyers for former President Trump are blasting New York Attorney General Letitia James’ "unconstitutional" attempts to block the GOP presumptive nominee’s appeal and force a property sale as the deadline for him to post hundreds of millions of dollars of bond in the case looms.
Trump and his legal team have appealed and requested a stay on his $464 million civil fraud judgment. On Monday, his lawyers said that "ongoing diligent efforts have proven that a bond in the judgment’s full amount is a ‘practical impossibility,’" amid attempts to approach about 30 surety companies.
NY AG ASKS COURT TO IGNORE TRUMP CLAIM THAT POSTING $464M BOND IS 'PRACTICAL IMPOSSIBILITY'
The lawyers said the "enormous magnitude" of the bond requirement, which effectively requires cash reserves approaching $1 billion, is "unprecedented for a private company."
James has pushed back, calling Trump’s request for a stay "extraordinary" and "improper." James has said that Trump should be able to secure the entire value via multiple sureties or offer his real-estate holdings as collateral.
But Trump attorney Clifford S. Robert on Thursday sent a letter to the Appellate Division of New York’s Supreme Court, arguing James’ efforts are "unconstitutional."
"It would be completely illogical—and the definition of an unconstitutional Excessive Fine and a Taking—to require Defendants to sell properties at all, and especially in a ‘fire sale,’ in order to be able to appeal the lawless Supreme Court judgment, as that would cause harm that cannot be repaired once the Defendants do win, as is overwhelmingly likely, on appeal," Robert wrote.
Robert also argued that by James demanding Trump post bond in the full amount in order to appeal, she and the Supreme Court of New York have "sought to impose a patently unreasonable, unjust, and unconstitutional (under both the Federal and New York State Constitutions) bond condition, which would cause irreparable harm and foreclose any review of Supreme Court’s deeply flawed decision in this case."
"In short, while attempting to cynically and wrongfully tar the Defendants’ witnesses as ‘unreliable,’ the Attorney General does not actually dispute the truth of a single one of their specific claims," Robert wrote. "This is unsurprising because these claims are undeniable to those with knowledge of real estate and sureties."
Trump plans to ‘exhaust all options’ for bond
TRUMP UNABLE TO GET $464M APPEAL BOND TO STOP COLLECTION, ATTORNEYS SAY: 'PRACTICAL IMPOSSIBILITY'
Fox News Digital has learned that Trump and his legal team currently have "all options on the table."
A source familiar told Fox News Digital that his team plans "to exhaust all options."
New York Attorney General said she is "prepared" to ask the judge to seize former President Donald Trump's assets if he cannot pay the $354 million judgment handed down in his civil fraud case. (ABC News/Screenshot/Brendan McDermid-Pool/Getty Images)
"The Trump team is continuing to look at every conceivable option," the source said, adding that they are "hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst."
NEW YORK ATTORNEY GENERAL TAUNTS TRUMP ABOUT INTEREST HE OWES ON CIVIL FRAUD JUDGMENT
If the Trump team’s appeal is granted, the judgment bond could be slashed considerably. It is unclear whether the court will rule on his appeal.
Brooke Singman is a political correspondent and reporter for Fox News Digital, Fox News Channel and FOX Business.
