New York Attorney General Seeks Injunction Against Trump

October 14, 2022 by Tom Ramstack
New York Attorney General Seeks Injunction Against Trump
The Columbus Circle globe is a sculpture of a globe by Kim Brandell, installed outside Trump International Hotel and Tower at Columbus Circle in Manhattan, New York City. The globe is an homage to the Unisphere, located in Donald Trump's home borough of Queens. (Photo by Dan McCue)

NEW YORK — Donald Trump will learn on Halloween whether a New York judge grants the state attorney general’s request to block the Trump Organization from taking steps that might evade a lawsuit.

The judge set a hearing for Oct. 31 to decide whether to impose a preliminary injunction on the Trump Organization prohibiting its top officials from what the attorney general calls “fraudulent or illegal acts.”

The hearing would be a follow-up to New York Attorney General Letitia James’ lawsuit that accuses Trump of collecting $250 million of ill-gotten gain through misrepresentations to financial institutions.

She asked a Delaware court for the injunction to prevent Trump from shifting money from New York to a new corporation he registered the same day the lawsuit was filed.

She also asked for a court-appointed monitor to ensure Trump or his associates do not engage in fraud. 

James’ original lawsuit filed last month says Trump fraudulently misrepresented the value of his assets to cheat on taxes and to obtain favorable terms for insurance and loans. It mentioned a 2021 Trump Organization financial statement that listed the value of golf clubs and the Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

It also said Trump “continues to treat $93 million held in a Vornado partnership as his own cash.”

Vornado Realty Trust is a real estate investment trust with its primary office in New York City. The company invests in office buildings and street retail in Manhattan.

On the same day James filed the lawsuit, Trump registered a company in New York called Trump Organization II LLC. It was incorporated in Delaware, where the laws are known to be protective of corporations.

“When [the Office of the Attorney General] raised its concern that the Trump Organization may be seeking to move assets out of state … the Trump Organization offered no assurances,” James’ filing for an injunction says.

The lawsuit she filed Sept. 21 sought return of $250 million she says Trump, his children and corporate executives gained through a decadelong scheme that included misleading banks.

The lawsuit seeks to permanently stop the Trumps from doing business in New York by revoking their business certificates and banning them from serving as corporate officers. It also requests a court order stripping the Trump Organization of its right to obtain loans or to acquire real estate for five years.

“Donald Trump falsely inflated his net worth by billions of dollars to unjustly enrich himself and to cheat the system, thereby cheating all of us,” James said at a Sept. 21 news conference.

On Thursday, she said in a statement, “Since we filed this sweeping lawsuit last month, Donald Trump and the Trump Organization have continued those same fraudulent practices and taken measures to evade responsibility. Today, we are seeking an immediate stop to these actions because Mr. Trump should not get to play by different rules.”

She said she was concerned Trump would reorganize his business empire in a way that allows him to continue hiding assets by shifting them between business entities.

State attorneys tried to demonstrate a pattern of secretive behavior by Trump as evidence an injunction is needed. They referred to a deposition Trump gave in the summer during a separate lawsuit in which he repeatedly invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination by refusing to answer questions.

An attorney for the Trump Organization called James’ request for an injunction a political stunt to help her chances at getting reelected.

“We have repeatedly provided assurance, in writing, that the Trump Organization has no intention of doing anything improper,” attorney Alina Habba said in a statement.

She also accused James of “judge-shopping” to increase her chances of winning by filing for the injunction in a division of the New York Supreme Court where the Trump Organization has struggled previously against regulatory enforcement. Habba wants the case transferred to a commercial division that deals often with high-value corporate cases.

James filed for the injunction on the same day a congressional committee voted to subpoena Trump about potentially criminal behavior in trying to overturn the 2020 presidential election to maintain his role as president.

The case is New York v. Donald J. Trump et al. in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York.

Tom can be reached at [email protected] and @TomRamstack

A+
a-
  • Donald Trump
  • law
  • Letitia James
  • Litigation
  • Trump Organization II
  • In The News

    Health

    Voting

    Litigation

    July 10, 2025
    by Dan McCue
    Federal Judge Certifies Class Action in Birthright Citizenship Case

    CONCORD, N.H. — A federal judge on Thursday barred the Trump administration from ending birthright citizenship, reviving a legal standoff... Read More

    CONCORD, N.H. — A federal judge on Thursday barred the Trump administration from ending birthright citizenship, reviving a legal standoff with the White House just days after the Supreme Court blocked federal judges from using nationwide injunctions to thwart the president's policies. Ruling from the bench... Read More

    July 9, 2025
    by Dan McCue
    Pediatricians Sue Kennedy Over ‘Unscientific Changes’ to Vaccine Policy

    WASHINGTON — The American Academy of Pediatrics and a half dozen other major medical groups sued Health Secretary Robert F.... Read More

    WASHINGTON — The American Academy of Pediatrics and a half dozen other major medical groups sued Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Monday for making “unilateral, unscientific changes to federal vaccine policy” that they contend are an “assault” on science and public health. In a... Read More

    July 8, 2025
    by Tom Ramstack
    Gun Rights Groups Sue to Block National Firearms Act Enforcement

    WASHINGTON — A coalition of Second Amendment advocates is suing to invalidate gun ownership restrictions that were revised by the... Read More

    WASHINGTON — A coalition of Second Amendment advocates is suing to invalidate gun ownership restrictions that were revised by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act President Donald Trump signed July 4. The bill removes many of the National Firearms Act taxes associated with gun ownership. The... Read More

    July 8, 2025
    by Alexa Citrin
    Trump Crackdown on Pro-Palestinian Campus Activists Goes to Trial 

    BOSTON — A trial over the Trump administration’s attempts to deport international students and scholars involved in pro-Palestinian activism on... Read More

    BOSTON — A trial over the Trump administration’s attempts to deport international students and scholars involved in pro-Palestinian activism on college campuses began on Monday with the plaintiffs arguing the efforts threaten to upend free speech rights enshrined in the U.S. Constitution. “Not since the McCarthy... Read More

    July 2, 2025
    by Tom Ramstack
    Justice Dept. Appeals Court Judgment That Blocked Trump’s Law Firm Sanctions

    WASHINGTON — The Justice Department this week appealed a court judgment that blocked sanctions against the law firm of Perkins... Read More

    WASHINGTON — The Justice Department this week appealed a court judgment that blocked sanctions against the law firm of Perkins Coie in what appears to be a resumption of President Donald Trump's reprisals against lawyers who oppose his policies. The Justice Department has argued that Perkins... Read More

    June 25, 2025
    by Dan McCue
    Federal Judge Stays Freeze on Federal Funding for EV Infrastructure

    SEATTLE — A federal judge in Washington state temporarily suspended the Trump administration’s freeze of roughly $1 billion in funding... Read More

    SEATTLE — A federal judge in Washington state temporarily suspended the Trump administration’s freeze of roughly $1 billion in funding intended to help states create a network of electric vehicle charging stations and related infrastructure along major roadways. Created as part of the bipartisan infrastructure law,... Read More

    News From The Well
    scroll top