Legal Development: New York Appeals Court Reinstates Gag Order on Trump in Fraud Case

 

 A New York appeals court has reestablished a gag order on former President Donald Trump within his $250 million civil business fraud case.

1. This order prohibits Trump from publicly discussing the staff of Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron, overseeing the ongoing trial.

2. Engoron has scheduled the closing arguments for mid-January in New York Attorney General Letitia James' lawsuit.

   "A New York appeals court has reinstated a gag order against Donald Trump in his $250 million civil business fraud trial. This order prohibits Trump from publicly discussing the staff of Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron, who is overseeing the trial.

Judge Engoron initially imposed the gag order on Trump and later extended it to cover his legal team due to their repeated targeting of the judge’s principal law clerk, Allison Greenfield.

Judge Engoron revealed that his office faced an overwhelming influx of threats and harassment during the trial. An official from the New York Court System’s Department of Public Safety informed the appeals court that Trump’s comments about Greenfield triggered "hundreds" of threatening messages, many of which were antisemitic.

A four-judge appellate panel lifted a temporary suspension of the gag orders on Thursday, issued while Trump appealed the speech restrictions.

Three days earlier, Trump's attorneys had urged the appeals court not to reinstate the gag orders, arguing that they unlawfully prevented Trump from accusing Engoron and Greenfield of political bias.

Engoron has previously found Trump in violation of the gag order twice, resulting in a total of $15,000 in fines imposed on the former president since the fraud trial began in October.

However, this specific order does not prevent Trump from criticizing Judge Engoron or New York Attorney General Letitia James, who filed the case alleging that Trump and his co-defendants falsely inflated Trump’s assets for personal gain.

Trump has persistently criticized both Engoron and James, labeling the judge as a Trump "hater" and dismissing the case as a "witch hunt."

Recently, Trump made multiple posts on Truth Social targeting Engoron's wife, accusing her of criticizing him and commenting on the trial on a platform previously known as Twitter (referred to as 'X'). However, Engoron's wife clarified to Newsweek that she does not have an account on 'X' and hasn't posted any anti-Trump messages.

On Thursday, Trump continued with at least three additional posts alleging that Engoron's wife had sent anti-Trump messages on social media."

Engoron has already determined Trump, along with his two adult sons, the Trump Organization, and its top executives, to be responsible for fraudulently misrepresenting real estate property and other assets. The trial's purpose is to establish penalties and address other allegations of misconduct outlined in James' lawsuit.

Apart from seeking approximately $250 million in damages, James aims to permanently prevent Trump Sr., Donald Trump Jr., and Eric Trump from managing any New York-based business.

On Thursday morning, Engoron extended the trial's originally planned conclusion, moving the closing arguments to January 11 after a request from Trump's legal team for more preparation time.

The defense intends to recall Trump to testify as their final witness on December 11. Engoron intends to deliver a verdict a few weeks subsequent to the trial's conclusion.