It was just three weeks ago when New York Attorney General Letitia James announced a sweeping civil case against Donald Trump, his controversial business, and three of his adult children, as part of a lengthy investigation into the Trump Organization’s allegedly fraudulent business practices. There’s no doubt that the allegations are serious — state prosecutors documented more than 200 instances of fraud — and might cost the former president dearly.
Yesterday, the Democratic attorney general sought a preliminary injunction related to the case, and as NBC News reported, it’s a doozy.
New York Attorney General Letitia James filed court papers Thursday seeking to stop former President Donald Trump from transferring assets from his namesake real estate company, the latest move in her civil case alleging years of fraudulent practices. The motion for a preliminary injunction says Trump Organization representatives created a new company with the same name in Delaware six days before James’ office brought the suit.
And then, on Sept. 21 — the same day James filed the civil action against the Trump Organization — the Republican’s company filed paperwork to register the new company in New York.
Its name: Trump Organization II. I’m not kidding. That’s the actual name.
In a written statement, James argued that the former president’s operation has continued with its fraudulent business practices in the weeks since the civil case was filed. Just as notably, she added that the Trump Organization also “appears to be taking steps to restructure its business to evade the reaches” of the ongoing case, and has “refused to provide any assurance that it will not seek to move assets out of New York to evade legal accountability.” James added: “Specifically, [the office of the state attorney general] is seeking an order that would prohibit the Trump Organization from submitting a statement of financial condition or other asset disclosure for Mr. Trump to lenders and insurers, either to satisfy existing obligations or to obtain new financing and insurance, that fails to adequately disclose the assumptions and techniques used for valuing his assets, as outlined in the complaint. The order would also prohibit the Trump Organization from transferring any material asset to a non-party affiliate or otherwise disposing of a material asset without court approval.”
Alina Habba, a lawyer representing Trump in the case, said in a statement that the business “has no intention of doing anything improper.” A court hearing on James’ motion is scheduled for Oct. 31. Watch this space.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
Latest Post
Recommended
