Topline
New York State Judge Arthur Engoron on Wednesday ordered former President Donald Trump to pay $110,000 in fines and agreed to lift a civil contempt finding against him provided he meet certain conditions, a month after New York Attorney General Letitia James ordered Trump to pay $10,000 for each day he refused to comply with James’ subpoena.
Donald Trump speaks during an event with lawmakers.
Key Facts
Trump, who has said he does not possess the documents and information subpoenaed by James, will have the contempt order lifted if he complies with Engoron’s requirements by May 20.
The requirements include providing affidavits with more details on the Trump Organization’s practices for destroying and retaining documents as well as payment of the fine to the New York Attorney General, or the civil contempt finding will be reinstated.
The ruling comes after Trump’s lawyers, in an attempt to comply with Engoron’s original contempt ruling, filed a host of recent court documents claiming they conducted a thorough search of Trump’s records and could not locate any new documents subpoenaed by James.
Engoron has said Trump and his lawyers have not provided adequate details on the search for his documents.
Engoron ruled to hold Trump in contempt of court in April after James argued Trump “did not comply at all” with her subpoena to hand over tax records and other documents, despite a March 31 deadline to do so.
James’ office and lawyers for Trump did not respond to requests for comment from Forbes.
Key Background
James launched a civil investigation into whether Trump used misleading financial statements to secure loans and avoid taxes several years ago. She did so after Trump’s former personal attorney Michael Cohen told lawmakers in 2019 that Trump and his company lied about the value of assets for financial gain. Trump has denied any wrongdoing and accused James of leading a politically motivated investigation. While the Trump Organization has turned over thousands of documents to the attorney general’s office, Trump has only provided a handful of personal records, according to James. His lawyers have argued on several occasions he does not have the documents, which include tax records and statements of financial condition, subpoenaed by the New York Attorney General. Trump in an affidavit last week said he no longer has cell phones requested by James, claiming once again he had turned over all the material in his possession that James’ office had subpoenaed. Trump has repeatedly and unsuccessfully sought to overturn Engoron’s $10,000-a-day fines and had appealed the contempt ruling.
Further Reading
Trump Says He Lost Cell Phones Requested By New York Attorney General (Forbes)
New York judge lifts civil contempt finding against Trump and orders him to pay $110,000 in fines (CNN)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/madelinehalpert/2022/05/11/new-york-judge-orders-trump-to-pay-over-100000-in-fines-lifts-civil-contempt-finding/