by New York Attorney General Letitia James asked a judge on Thursday for a preliminary injunction to bar the Trump Organization from transferring assets without court approval, arguing that the company “appears to be taking steps to restructure its business to avoid ” liability to mass treatment filed by James’ office in September.
James’ office said in Thursday’s filing that the Trump Organization “has continued to use practices it knew to be improper or fraudulent” since the lawsuit was filed on Sept. 21. his children, and their eponymous company, and is seeking $250 million and an end to the company’s operations in the state.
A lawyer for Trump and the company called the filing “a veiled attempt to keep this case before Judge Engoron,” the judge overseeing proceedings related to the attorney general’s investigation. Trump tried to move the civil case to a different New York court.
“We have repeatedly assured, in writing, that the Trump Organization has no intention of doing anything improper,” said the lawyer, Alina Haba. “This is just another ploy that Ms. James hopes will help her failed political campaign.”
A recent Siena College poll put James, a Democrat running for re-election, about 16 percentage points ahead of her Republican opponent.
The attorney general’s office wrote in its filing that the Trump Organization registered a new corporation with the state the same day it was sued, called “Trump Organization II LLC.” In Thursday’s filing, he asked a judge to appoint an independent monitor to oversee any new financial disclosures made by the Trump Organization to banks and insurance companies. The company is accused of falsifying asset valuations in more than 200 cases. Trump and his company have repeatedly denied all allegations of wrongdoing.
James’ office expressed “concern that the Trump Organization may seek to move assets out of state” and asked the attorney for “some assurance” that the company would provide “reasonable advance notice of asset transfers,” according to the deposition.
“The Trump Organization has offered no assurances,” the attorney general’s office wrote, adding that a lawyer for the company said it “has taken no steps to avoid the court’s jurisdiction or make it more difficult to obtain relief against corporate entities.”
In his lawsuit, James’ office is asking a judge to revoke the Trump Organization’s business certificate, effectively preventing it from doing business in New York. Her office is seeking to permanently bar Trump and his children named in the suit from serving as an officer or director of any business entity in New York, including their family’s company. It also seeks a five-year ban on Trump and company from acquiring real estate in New York or applying for loans from any New York-based company.
James requested a trial date in late 2023.
Representatives for Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump and Ivanka Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
