Former President Donald Trump has been granted a temporary reprieve in the civil fraud case against him and his company, as an appeals court ruled on Monday that he does not have to immediately post a bond for more than $454 million. The court stated that Trump can delay payment of the full bond while he appeals the ruling, as long as he posts a partial $175 million bond within 10 days. This decision comes after Trump was ordered to pay $454.2 million plus interest in the case, which found him and his associates liable for fraudulently inflating the value of assets on financial statements for personal gain.
Trump had requested the appeals court to pause the judgment while he appeals the case, stating that it was not possible for him to secure an appeals bond for the full amount. The court partially granted his request, ordering him to pay $175 million immediately, which is more than the $100 million that Trump had originally requested to pay if he couldn’t delay the payment of the full amount. The court also put a hold on other aspects of the judgment against Trump, including restrictions on him and his sons leading New York businesses and a prohibition on Trump from obtaining loans from New York financial institutions.
New York Attorney General Letitia James, who brought the case, was expected to start enforcing the judgment against Trump if he didn’t pay by Monday. The attorney general’s office released a statement saying that Trump is still facing accountability for his fraud and that the $464 million judgment against him and the other defendants still stands. Trump now has 10 days to post a bond for $175 million, and he stated on Truth Social that he will abide by the ruling and post a bond, equivalent securities, or cash. The court has indicated that Trump’s appeal will be heard during its September 2024 term.
Forbes estimates Trump’s net worth at $2.6 billion, with only $413 million in cash and liquid assets, meaning he owes more than he has in his bank account. Trump’s real estate properties make up the bulk of his net worth, and he has suggested that he may have to sell off properties to pay the judgment against him if the court had not paused the judgment. Trump was also separately ordered to pay $83.3 million in writer E. Jean Carroll’s defamation case against him, and he posted a bond for $91.6 million in that case earlier in March.
New York Attorney General Letitia James sued Trump and his business associates in 2022, accusing them of fraudulently misstating the value of assets on financial statements. Judge Arthur Engoron found Trump and his co-defendants liable for misstating the value of assets and ruled that there was overwhelming evidence that they knowingly signed off on false financial statements. Trump has criticized the civil fraud case as a witch hunt aimed at hurting him in the presidential election.
