A Manhattan Supreme Court Judge ruled in the civil fraud lawsuit against former president Donald Trump. Judge Arthur Engoron ruled that Trump and his co-defendants pay $464 million in damages after the court found them guilty in a civil fraud case. The court found the former president guilty of scheming to manipulate his net worth.
Therefore, Trump needs to post a $464 million bond by the end of the month to satisfy the judgment against him. However, his attorneys claim that he’s struggling to come up with the cash. Here’s a rundown of what his lawyers said.
Trump Lawyers Say Insurance Companies Do Not Want to Underwrite His Bond
In an appellate filing, Trump’s lawyers say he has trouble finding an insurance company to cover the massive judgment. They added that he had approached 30 underwriters to back the bond due by the end of March. However, none of the companies will help in the New York attorney general’s case.
“The amount of the judgment, with interest, exceeds $464 million,” Trump’s lawyers wrote in the filing. “And very few bonding companies will consider a bond of anything approaching that magnitude.” According to reports, the court ordered Trump to pay $454 million. The $464 million includes the disgorgement of his adult sons, Don Jr. and Eric.
His lawyers say they are working hard to find an insurance company to cover the judgment, including countless hours negotiating with one of the largest insurance companies in the world. However, they insist that obtaining a bond in the total amount isn’t feasible.
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Donald Trump Will Need $1B for an Insurance Company To Come Aboard
According to Trump’s lawyer, the former president would need about $1 billion for any insurance company to come aboard. However, it appears he doesn’t have it. Therefore, Trump’s lawyers asked the appeal court to hold off on the huge bond penalty until the appeal ends.
That way, the New York Attorney General Letitia James would be prevented from enforcing collection while the appeal is underway.
Potential Underwriters Seek for Cash to Back the Bond
An insurance broker, Gary Giulietti, who testified for Trump during the civil fraud trial, signed an affidavit stating that securing a bond in the total amount “is a practical impossibility.” According to Trump’s lawyers, potential underwriters seek cash, not properties, to back the bond.
Alan Garten, a top legal officer of the Trump Organization, also confirmed the former president’s dilemma. In a sworn statement, he said that the insurance company Chubb, which underwrote Trump’s $91.6 million bond to cover the E. Jean Carroll judgment, could not accept real estate to secure the civil fraud bond.
Possible Reasons Why Trump Couldn’t Meet the Court’s $464 Million Bond Demands
According to a Forbes estimate, Donald Trump is worth about $2.6bn. He also testified last year that he had $400m in liquid assets. However, the $464m judgment is not his only expense.
In January 2024, a court ordered him to pay $83m after losing a defamation case to E Jean Carroll, a woman he allegedly sexually abused. In that case, he posted a bond totaling $91.6 million.
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Donald Trump Speaks
Trump said on Monday, March 18, 2024, that he considered it “practically impossible” to post the bond. According to a post on Truth Social, the former president claimed the bond’s size is “unconstitutional and un-American.” Furthermore, he said the bond is “practically impossible for ANY Company, including one as successful as mine.”
“The Bonding Companies have never heard of such a bond of this size before,” he added. “Nor do they have the ability to post such a bond, even if they wanted to.” Also, Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung blasted the size of Judge Engoron’s judgment.
“A bond of this size would be an abuse of the law, contradict bedrock principles of our Republic, and fundamentally undermine the rule of law in New York,” Cheung said. “President Trump will continue fighting and beating all of these Crooked Joe Biden-directed hoaxes and will Make America Great Again.”
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