A Democratic-appointed judge ordered a pause on the cancellations of former President Donald Trump’s business licenses Friday but denied Trump’s attempt to postpone his civil fraud trial in New York.
Appeals Judge Peter Moulton, who was appointed by former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, paused part of a Sept. 26 ruling by Judge Arthur Engoron that ordered the cancellation of some of Trump’s business licenses. The order came after Engoron ruled the former president had committed fraud by inflating his net worth and the worth of his company.
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“We thank the Appellate Division for staying the NY Attorney General’s and Judge Engoron’s overzealous attempt to cancel our New York business certificates,” the Trump Organization said in a statement Friday. “Judge Engoron’s order erroneously sought to adjudicate the rights of non-party business entities that employ nearly 1,000 hard-working New Yorkers, have never been accused of any wrongdoing and, were never given their day in court – in clear violation of their fundamental Constitutional rights and Due Process.”
The organization continued, “We will continue to vigorously defend our company and our incredible employees from this politically-motivated persecution.”
The order to pause the cancellations occurred directly after a hearing on Friday afternoon, where Trump defense attorney Christopher Kise claimed that there was no going back from dissolving the licenses.
“This is everything owned or controlled by the defendant. Once you dissolve, you dissolve,” Kise argued at the appellate court, according to ABC. “It’s chaos. It’s chaos right now.”
Trump’s attorneys had requested both a stay on the cancellation of the business certificates and a postponement of the trial while they appealed Engoron’s ruling. However, Moulton denied the postponement, meaning the trial will continue as scheduled Tuesday morning.
The case stems from a lawsuit New York Attorney General Letitia James filed last year that alleged fraud by the Trump Organization. She is seeking $250 million in damages and hoping to block Trump from doing business in New York. Engoron already found Trump liable for the fraud claims, but now the trial will proceed to examine six other claims brought by James.
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The nonjury trial just concluded its first week, and it is expected to continue toward the end of December. Engoron, who is overseeing the fraud trial, said he expects the case to last until Dec. 22. The former president is expected to testify as a witness in the case, alongside sons Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr.
The Washington Examiner has reached out to Trump’s lawyers for comment.
