Trump is unable to make $464 million bond in civil fraud case, his lawyers tell court
United States — Attorneys for former President Donald Trump told a New York appeals court that their client is unable to locate an insurance provider to underwrite his bond to satisfy the substantial judgment against him in the attorney general of New York’s civil fraud case.
Trump has reportedly approached 30 underwriters to support the bond, which is due by the end of this month, according to his attorneys.
Trump’s attorneys said, “Very few bonding companies will consider a bond of anything approaching that magnitude, as the amount of the judgment, with interest, exceeds $464 million.” (Trump was ordered to pay $454 million; his adult sons Don Jr. and Eric’s disgorgement is included in the $464 million.)
In an affidavit, insurance broker Gary Giulietti—who represented Trump in the civil fraud trial—said that obtaining a bail for the entire sum “is a practical impossibility.”
Trump’s lawyers claim that potential underwriters are looking for cash, not real estate, to support the bond.
Due to the fact that Trump’s properties are worth significantly more than the verdict, Trump’s attorneys have requested the appeals court to postpone posting the bail until after his appeal of the case is concluded. Trump requested that the court postpone posting the bond until after his appeal to New York’s top court is considered, in the event that the appeals court rules against him.
Trump declared on Monday that he believed posting the bond was “practically impossible.”
He stated that the bond’s size is “unConstitutional, un-American, unprecedented, and practically impossible for ANY Company, including one as successful as mine” in a post on Truth Social. The Bonding Companies are unable to post a bond of this magnitude even if they so choose, and they have never heard of one before.
In a civil fraud lawsuit launched by New York Attorney General Letitia James, New York Judge Arthur Engoron ordered Trump to pay $355 million in disgorgement, or “ill-gotten gains,” last month. In his 93-page ruling, Engoron stated that Trump and his co-defendants, which included his adult sons, were accountable for conspiracy, fraud, and the publication of fake financial statements and company documents.
Although Trump is contesting the decision, he must provide a bond to be kept in an account until the appeal is handled, which may take years to complete, in order to prevent the state from enforcing the verdict.
Earlier this month, as part of his appeal in the defamation case against E. Jean Carroll, Trump posted a $91.6 million bond.
However, according to Giulietti, some of the largest underwriters are prohibited from obtaining bonds worth more than $100 million by internal standards. He added that not one of them, not even the biggest insurance firms in the world, would take real estate; they would only feel safe accepting cash or shares.
He added that Trump would have to come up with more than $550 in fees and interest.
“This is the largest appeal bond I have ever seen for a private company or individual in my entire career, where I have been directly or indirectly involved in the issuance of thousands of bonds,” Giulietti stated. “Under these circumstances, obtaining an appeal bond for the judgment amount of over $464 million is just not possible, despite substantial good-faith effort over the last several weeks.”
The Trump Organization’s chief legal officer, Alan Garten, stated under oath that Chubb, which underwrote Trump’s $91.6 million bond to pay the Carroll judgment, was unable to accept real estate as collateral for the civil fraud bond.
“This kind of bond would be an abuse of the law, go against the core values of our Republic, and seriously damage the rule of law in New York,” stated Cheung. “President Trump will make America great again by continuing to combat and defeat all of these Crooked Joe Biden-directed hoaxes.”