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The New York State Attorney General's Office has filed a ruling in Westchester County that states the state is preparing to seize Donald Trump's golf course and private property north of Manhattan known as Seven Springs. This is the first time we have shown this.
Just a week after Judge Arthur Engoron formally entered a $464 million judgment against Trump, his sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, and the Trump Organization, state's attorney. filed the judgment with the Westchester County Clerk's Office on March 6.
The ruling against Trump and the former president's struggle to secure bail while he appeals the verdict could raise more money for legal costs and a third bid for the White House. This is a direct blow to Mr. Trump's image as a billionaire.
Issuing a judgment is the first step in a creditor's attempt to recover property. If an asset is foreclosed, additional steps follow, such as placing a lien on the asset, seizing the property, or taking other actions in court.
The judgment has already been handed down in New York City, where Trump's properties include Trump Tower, the Trump Tower penthouse at 40 Wall Street, his hotel adjacent to Central Park, and numerous apartment buildings. be.
Florida, including Miami and Palm Beach, where Trump owns Mar-a-Lago and Trump National Doral Golf Club and Resort, or Cook County, Illinois, where Trump's hotel in Chicago is located, according to the report. No county in the state has yet handed down a verdict. CNN released the record on Thursday.
President Trump now has four days to satisfy himself with the verdict, ask an appeals court to grant a smaller payment or delay the payment until after an appeal.
President Trump said on Thursday's New Truth Social that the funding was “extremely expensive” and that “it's impossible for a bond company to put up that much money.”
Johnny Milano/Washington Post/Getty Images
This September 2020 photo shows Donald Trump's Seven Springs mansion in Mount Kisco, Westchester County, New York.
The process of seizing assets is neither quick nor easy. Mr. Trump has built his business by creating limited liability companies for nearly all of his real estate and assets (more than 300 in total), which are ultimately controlled by his trust.
“Since they are complexly organized and he is not the paper owner, he will not be able to obtain a judgment against him directly for the particular property. Resolving this issue will not be easy and will not be immediate. “It's not going to happen,” said Nikos Passas, a professor of criminology and criminal justice at Northeastern University.
“Meanwhile, she can also get collections from banks and go after bank assets. She could put liens on real estate. Anything she can do to collect.” Passas said.
“All of this completely undermines the brand. He's pretty much using the brand to make money not only in the United States but around the world,” Passas said. “Ultimately, I think this could very well mean the end of the Trump business in New York. Not only that, but it could cause problems in other jurisdictions as well.”
Separately, Trump's lawyers on Thursday pushed back against several proposals made by the New York attorney general's office about how bail should be paid.
That includes the idea that President Trump could have multiple underwriters secure bonds for the total amount of the judgment, which would still give President Trump $500 million in cash or stock, meaning that Trump It is necessary to pledge funds that the company does not have.
Trump's lawyers argued in a filing that the New York attorney general's office should not be able to contest their claims.
If no agreement is reached, New York Attorney General Letitia James said she would take action to seize the assets.
The attorney general's office said Wednesday that it is common for large companies to post billions of dollars in corporate bonds and suggested that President Trump should have pledged the real estate to the court.
“This proposal is unrealistic and unreasonable. The Attorney General cites no New York precedent to support this contention. In any event, from a risk perspective, the The Attorney General's proposal is functionally equivalent to the Supreme Court's proposal. already imposed “Through the request of a court-appointed monitor to oversee the defendant's business operations,” Trump's lawyers wrote.
Trump's lawyers also said that being forced to sell the property in a fire sale would cause irreparable injury because he would not be able to get the property back later if he were successful on appeal.
“The Attorney General and the Supreme Court have created a patently unreasonable, unreasonable, and unconstitutional bail (under both the federal and New York Constitutions) by requiring the entire amount of the judgment to be pledged for appeal. seeking to impose financial conditions,” they wrote.
Mr. Engoron on Thursday expanded the role of watchdog overseeing the Trump Organization to include broader oversight of the internal financial practices of Mr. Trump's real estate business.
Mr. Engoron also ordered the Trump Organization to provide the Monitor with detailed information about its efforts to obtain bonds to cover the judgment.
“The Trump Organization acknowledges and agrees that all efforts to secure the surety bonds, including any requested or required financial disclosures, any information provided in response to such requests, and any information provided by the Trump Organization in connection with securing such bonds. The judge shall notify the Monitor in advance of any representations made by the defendants, including any personal guarantees by any of the defendants, and any obligations of the Trump Organization required by the guarantors.''
Mr. Engoron laid out a timeline of specific steps the Trumps should take within the next month, including giving their supervisor, former Judge Barbara Jones, full access to day-to-day financial operations.
The judge said that within two months, the monitor would be ordered to submit a report “describing an assessment of the Trump Organization's internal controls and recommending appropriate internal controls for the Trump Organization.”
He also notified the Trumps that he may order them to implement the monitor's recommendations.
Engoron also requires observers to have copies of the Trump Organization's monthly bank statements and securities statements, to be notified in advance of any transfers in excess of $5 million, and to establish a business entity. or to receive information regarding dissolution, and to receive advance notice of debt financing. .
This story has been updated with additional developments.
CNN's Kate Sullivan contributed to this report.
