Former President Donald Trump and two of his sons have agreed to appear for questioning in a yearslong lawsuit alleging the family participated in a fraudulent marketing scheme.
The former president will appear for his deposition on June 16, and his sons Don Jr. and Eric will be deposed on May 10 and May 12, respectively, according to Friday court filings with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. Ivanka Trump may also be called in for questioning, but a date has not yet been set.
The class-action lawsuit, filed in 2018, alleges the family used Donald Trump’s former reality TV show The Celebrity Apprentice to urge participants to invest in a telecommunications company while secretly pocketing millions of dollars. Plaintiffs say they were misled, arguing the former president used his reputation as a successful entrepreneur to convince them the investments would be worthwhile.
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“The Message was materially false. The Investments did not — and could not — offer a reasonable probability of success,” the lawsuit read. “Nor was Trump endorsing the Investments because he believed they would.”
The family is accused of endorsing ACN Opportunity, a multilevel marketing company linked to a nonprofit organization that utilizes Trump’s brand to appeal to a teenage audience. Trump and his children allegedly pocketed payments between 2005 and 2015 while promoting business opportunities with ACN; the Trump Network, a vitamin and health product company; and the Trump Institute, a seminar-style program that promised to “sell Trump’s ‘secrets to success,'” according to the lawsuit.
The 2018 filing seeks punitive and treble damages, compensatory damages, attorneys’ fees, and other forms of relief in an unspecified amount.
Trump’s attorneys have filed a motion to dismiss the suit, arguing the family does not own ACN or have control over its operations.
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The parties will submit their next joint status letter on April 22, according to Friday’s filing.
A representative from the Trump legal team did not respond to a request for comment from the Washington Examiner.
