NEW YORK, NY – Former President Donald Trump is appealing a decision to reinstate gag orders in his New York civil fraud case, seeking permission from the state’s highest court, according to a court filing on Monday.
The mid-level state appeals court reinstated the gag orders last week, which had prohibited Trump and his lawyers from making public statements about court staff. This came after an appeals court judge temporarily paused the order on Nov. 16.
The gag order was initially imposed by Justice Arthur Engoron on Oct. 3 after Trump accused Engoron’s top clerk of political bias in a post on his Truth Social platform, which resulted in hundreds of threats from Trump supporters. Later, Engoron also restricted Trump’s lawyers’ statements about his staff.
In the filing, Trump’s lawyer Clifford Robert argued that the orders violated the U.S. and New York state Constitutions by restricting Trump’s “First Amendment right to highlight serious concerns raised by the public and partisan activities of Justice Engoron’s Principal Law Clerk during an ongoing bench trial.”
The case against Trump and his family real estate company accuses him of inflating his net worth by billions of dollars to deceive lenders and insurers. New York Attorney General Letitia James is seeking $250 million in penalties and wants Trump banned from New York state real estate business. Trump has denied any wrongdoing and alleged political bias from James.
Engoron has already fined Trump $15,000 for breaching the order and warned of steeper penalties, including imprisonment, for future breaches. Trump is also under a similar gag order in an unrelated criminal case over his efforts to change the results of the 2020 election, as he faces federal and state criminal indictments.
In the race for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, Trump maintains a commanding lead despite the legal challenges he is facing.
To summarize, Trump seeks to appeal the reinstatement of gag orders in his New York civil fraud case, alleging violations of his constitutional rights and political bias against him. Despite the ongoing legal battles, he remains a frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.
