Attorney General James Wins Landmark Victory in Case Against Donald Trump

NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James today released the following statement after Justice Arthur F. Engoron of New York State Supreme Court ruled in her favor in her office’s civil fraud case against Donald Trump, the other individual defendants, and the Trump Organization entities, ordering the defendants to pay more than $450 million in total, which represents $363.8 million in disgorgement and pre-judgment interest:

“Today, justice has been served. This is a tremendous victory for this state, this nation, and for everyone who believes that we all must play by the same rules — even former presidents. 

“For years, Donald Trump engaged in massive fraud to falsely inflate his net worth and unjustly enrich himself, his family, and his organization. While he may have authored the ‘Art of the Deal,’ our case revealed that his business was based on the art of the steal.

“When powerful people cheat to get better loans, it comes at the expense of honest and hardworking people. Everyday Americans cannot lie to a bank to get a mortgage to buy a home, and if they did, our government would throw the book at them. There simply cannot be different rules for different people.

“Now, Donald Trump is finally facing accountability for his lying, cheating, and staggering fraud. Because no matter how big, rich, or powerful you think you are, no one is above the law.”

The decision issued today by Justice Arthur F. Engoron grants the following relief:

• Donald Trump and the other defendants are ordered to pay more than $450 million in total, which represents $363.8 million in disgorgement and pre-judgment interest;
• Donald Trump, Allen Weisselberg, and Jeffrey McConney are each banned from serving as an officer or director of any New York company for three years;
• Allen Weisselberg and Jeffrey McConney are additionally banned from serving in a financial management role in any New York company for life;
• Donald Trump, Jr. and Eric Trump are banned from serving as an officer or director of any New York company for two years;
• Donald Trump and his companies are banned from applying for loans from any New York bank or financial institution for three years;
• A new, Independent Director of Compliance role will be created at the Trump Organization to ensure the company establishes internal protocols and meets financial reporting obligations; and
• The current independent, external monitor will continue to oversee the company’s financial dealings and ensure this fraud cannot continue.

Following a three-year investigation, in September 2022 Attorney General James filed a lawsuit against Donald Trump, a number of Trump Organization companies, and senior executives for engaging in years of financial fraud and illegal conduct. In September 2023, before this trial began, Justice Engoron issued a ruling granting Attorney General James' motion for partial summary judgment, finding that Donald Trump and the defendants committed fraud by falsely inflating the value of his assets. Today’s decision and order that Donald Trump and the other individual defendants also engaged in illegal conduct and that relief against the defendants is necessary to prevent further fraudulent and illegal conduct comes after 11 weeks of trial, which concluded with closing arguments last month.

The investigation and subsequent legal action were conducted by Senior Enforcement Counsel Kevin Wallace, Special Counsel Andrew Amer, Assistant Attorney General Colleen K. Faherty, Assistant Attorney General Alex Finkelstein, Assistant Attorney General Wil Handley, Assistant Attorney General Stephanie Torre, Assistant Attorney General Sherief Gaber, Special Counsel Eric R. Haren, Real Estate Finance Enforcement Section Chief Louis M. Solomon, former Assistant Attorney General Mark Ladov, former Assistant Attorney General Austin Thompson, and Legal Support Analysts Samantha Stern and Labiba Hasan. Additional support was provided by Data Analyst Anushua Choudhury, Senior Data Analyst Akram Hasanov, Data Analyst Blake Rubey, former Data Scientist Chansoo Song, former Deputy Director of Research and Analytics Megan Thorsfeldt, and former Director of Research and Analytics Jonathan Werberg; as well as Information Technology Specialist Hewson Chen, Information Technology Specialist Paige Podolny, and Information Technology Specialist John Roach. Appellate support was provided by Deputy Solicitor General Judith Vale, Deputy Solicitor General Ester Murdukhayeva, Senior Assistant Solicitor General Dennis Fan, Assistant Solicitor General Cleland Welton, Assistant Solicitor General Daniel Magy, and former Assistant Solicitor General Eric Del Pozo. The investigation was overseen by First Deputy Attorney General Jennifer Levy.

A copy of the decision is available for download here.