Lawyers for former President Donald Trump declared that the former commander in chief intended to post a $100 million bond while appealing his civil fraud verdict, drastically lower than the $355 million he was ordered to pay.
The lawyers told an appellate court in New York on Wednesday that part of the civil fraud verdict that bans Trump from getting loans in the state would make it impossible for him to post a bond equal to the full $355 million judgment and asked for an interim stay on the remaining amount until the appeal process is complete.
“The exorbitant and punitive amount of the judgment coupled with an unlawful and unconstitutional blanket prohibition on lending transactions would make it impossible to secure and post a complete bond,” Trump lawyers Clifford Robert, Alina Habba, and Michael Farina wrote in the filing.
The lawyers argued Trump had assets, including multiple real estate properties, that more than covered the price of the bond but that the immediate $100 million bond “would simply serve as further security.”
The former president testified last year he was worth billions of dollars but that he only had $400 million in cash. Trump is required to pay a total of $543.4 million from various court cases.
The request comes after New York Attorney General Letitia James threatened to seize Trump’s real estate properties last week if he is unable to pay the full amount in cash. The threat included Trump’s “crown jewel” of 40 Wall Street.
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Trump appealed New York Judge Arthur Engoron’s judgment on Monday and is asking the court to determine whether Engoron “committed errors of law and/or fact” and whether he abused his discretion or his jurisdiction in the ruling.
The appeal has not stopped the enforcement of the punishment, but it did not require that the bond be paid in full in order to file.
