What we covered here
- Today’s major ruling: A judge ordered former President Donald Trump and his companies to pay nearly $355 million in a ruling in the New York civil fraud trial. Trump will also have to pay millions in interest on that money, be barred from serving as an officer or director of a New York corporation or other legal entities in the state for three years, and cannot apply for loans from any financial institution registered in the state for three years for fraudulently inflating the values of his properties.
- Trump’s sons are also impacted: Trump’s adult sons, Donald Jr. and Eric – who’ve essentially run the Trump Organization since 2017 – have been ordered to pay $4 million each for personal profits from the fraud and are barred from serving as executives in New York for two years. Two former Trump Org. executives are permanently banned from running finances for state businesses. Read the full ruling.
- What happens next: Trump vowed to appeal the decision. He and his co-defendants will likely need to come up with the full judgment of $355 million, with potentially more in interest, to move forward with an appeal, sources say. The trial in this case has served as a precursor to the four criminal trials Trump is expected to face this year as he campaigns to regain the presidency.
Our live coverage has ended. Read more about the ruling in the posts below.
Key takeaways from the civil fraud trial ruling against Donald Trump
Judge Arthur Engoron hit Donald Trump with his biggest punishment to date on Friday, in a ruling that fined the former president $355 million for fraudulently inflating the values of his properties.
Engoron found Trump liable for fraud, conspiracy and issuing false financial statements and false business records, and he barred him from serving as director of a company in New York for three years. But while he stopped short of dissolving the Trump Organization altogether, Engoron issued a blistering 93-page opinion that painted the former president as unremorseful and highly likely to commit fraud again.
“Their complete lack of contrition and remorse borders on pathological,” Engoron wrote of Trump and his co-defendants.
Here are key takeaways from the decision:
- The biggest fines yet against Trump: Engoron found that the defendants’ fraud saved them about $168 million in interest, fining Trump and his companies that amount. He also ruled that Trump and his companies were liable for $126 million in ill-gotten profits from the sale of the Old Post Office in Washington, DC, and that Trump and his companies were liable for $60 million in profits from the sale of Ferry Point in the Bronx. Engoron also wrote that Trump would be required for interest on those payments.
- The judge gets the last word: Trump repeatedly attacked Engoron and the case throughout the 11-week trial on social media, outside the courtroom – and even to the judge’s face while he testified. On Friday, Engoron got the last word, painting Trump as a “pathological” fraudster who would not stop unless forced. The judge acknowledged that the sins Trump committed — which his lawyers frequently argued had no victim because banks were repaid and often eager to do business with Trump’s company — were not as serious as some crimes. But he faulted Trump and his co-defendants for a complete lack of contrition.
- No corporate death penalty: The judge banned Trump from serving as an officer or director of a New York corporation for three years, but did not issue the so-called corporate death penalty. Engoron pulled back from a decision he issued a summary judgment in September dissolving Trump’s business certificates in finding that Trump and his co-defendants were liable for persistent and repeated fraud. But, the independent monitor installed last fall will stay in place for at least three years and an independent director of compliance should be put in place at the Trump Org. at the company’s expense, the ruling said.
- Judge says Cohen told the truth: Engoron recapped Michael Cohen’s theatrical trial testimony, acknowledging the credibility issues with Trump’s former lawyer and fixer. But ultimately, Engoron said, he believed Cohen.
- Trump’s adult sons banned for 2 years: Trump’s eldest sons – who’ve essentially run the Trump Organization since 2017 – are barred from serving as executives in New York for two years, according to Engoron’s order. The Trumps will have to navigate the two-year penalty as they sort out the future of the family-run real estate company.
Get up to speed on the ruling and more takeaways.
