Donald Trump will testify if called by the New York attorney general at an upcoming trial over her $250 million fraud lawsuit – where the ex-president’s adult children and his former “fixer” Michael Cohen could also take the stand.
Trump, 77, is listed as “witness No. 27” in Attorney General Letitia James’ list of people her office anticipates calling to the stand during the Manhattan Supreme Court trial, which is slated to start Monday and last up to three months.
“If called, he will testify,” Trump’s personal attorney Alina Habba told the Post on Thursday, as an appeals court rejected the ex-president’s bid to delay the trial.
James’ office, which is seeking at least $250 million and an order barring the ex-commander-in-chief from doing business in New York, also plans to ask Trump’s oldest children, Donald Jr., Eric and Ivanka, to testify as well.
Cohen — Trump’s former personal attorney who recently settled a lawsuit filed against the Trump Organization for allegedly unpaid legal fees — is also on the AG’s list of witnesses, as is Allen Weisselberg, the former chief financial officer of Trump’s business empire.
The former president is listed as witness No. 27 at the upcoming trial, but it’s unclear whether he will take the stand. APManhattan Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron has already ruled that the former president, Donald Jr., Eric, Weisselberg, and the Trump Org are liable for fraud, finding that they exaggerated the worth of their assets to get an edge with banks.
Engoron found on Tuesday that Trump and his company “indisputably” lied on financial filings, including by using “fantasy world” valuations for their assets and claiming that the Trump Tower penthouse in Midtown was 30,000 square feet when it was in fact closer to 11,000 square feet.
The judge also took the rare step of canceling Trump’s New York “business certificates,” which experts say could make it exceedingly hard for Trump to operate in the Empire State unless an appeals court intervenes.
(From left) Eric Trump, Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump were all called to appear as witnesses at the trial. AFP/Getty ImagesTrump has vowed to appeal Tuesday’s ruling and called Engoron, a Democrat, “deranged” and James, also a Democrat and who is Black, a “racist” and a “completely biased and corrupt prosecutor.”
Christopher Kise, one of Trump’s lawyers in the case, has called Engoron’s decision “outrageous” and “completely disconnected from the facts and governing law.”
At next week’s non-jury trial, Engoron is expected to hear testimony from witnesses called by both sides before deciding on the suit’s other allegations, including that Trump, his family and his business falsified business records and financial documents.
New York Attorney Letitia James is seeking an order to bar the former president from operating a business in New York. REUTERSAt another civil trial from earlier this year brought by advice columnist E. Jean Carroll, not only did Trump refrain from testifying, he didn’t show up for a single day of trial.
A Manhattan federal jury found him liable for sexually abusing and defaming Carroll and ordered him to pay $5 million in damages in that case.
Additional reporting by Priscilla DeGregory
