Former President Donald Trump filing for bankruptcy following the ruling in his civil fraud case may not save the former president, according to a legal analyst.
Trump's legal team has admitted that they've been unable to secure a $464 million bond they could need to prevent New York Attorney General Letitia James from seizing his assets. Trump has until Monday to secure a bond or turn over cash to satisfy the judgment or risk losing his properties and money while he appeals the judgment.
While appearing on MSNBC's Morning Joe, MSNBC legal analyst Lisa Rubin explained that if Trump files for bankruptcy, there's a chance he will plunge "many of his existing loan agreements into default." According to Rubin, the amount his lenders could collect could be "far in excess" of what James believes is necessary for a bond.
Even if Trump files bankruptcy for some of his entities, it might not be enough to halt the enforcement efforts, according to Rubin. She said Trump would also have to declare himself personally bankrupt, something she doesn't foresee Trump doing.
Newsweek reached out to Trump's spokesperson via email for comment.
The context:
Last month, Judge Engoron ruled in favor of James's lawsuit against Trump and his sons, Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., over allegations that he inflated the value of his properties and his own net worth. The former president was ordered to pay $454 million in penalties and has been barred from conducting business in New York City for two to three years.
The bond amount has since increased due to interest, and James could seize some of Trump's properties today, March 25, if the bond amount is not provided to the courts.
What we know:
Last week, Trump's legal team admitted that they have been unable to come up with the bond amount, calling it "a practical impossibility."
"Despite scouring the market, we have been unsuccessful in our effort to obtain a bond for the Judgment Amount for Defendants for the simple reason that obtaining an appeal bond for $464 million is a practical impossibility under the circumstances presented," Trump's legal team said in a filing last week.
Views:
In a statement last week, Trump took aim at James, saying, "A bond of the size set by the Democrat Club-controlled Judge, in Corrupt, Racist Letitia James' unlawful Witch Hunt, is unConstitutional, un-American, unprecedented, and practically impossible for ANY Company, including one as successful as mine."
"The Bonding Companies have never heard of such a bond, of this size, before, nor do they have the ability to post such a bond, even if they wanted to," the former president added.
Trump has continued to deny any wrongdoing in the case.
What's next:
James could begin seizing some of Trump's assets and properties on Monday morning if he is unable to post the bond amount.
However, pollster Frank Luntz told CNN on Sunday that the seizure of Trump's assets is "going to create the greatest victimhood of 2024, and you're going to elect Donald Trump."
"If they take his stuff, he's going to say that this is proof that the federal government and the establishment and the swamp in Washington and all the politicians across the country and the attorneys generals and all of this, that this is a conspiracy to deny him the presidency," Luntz said.
Update 3/25/24, 7:53 a.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
Update 3/25/24, 8:05 a.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
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Matthew Impelli is a Newsweek staff writer based in New York. His focus is reporting social issues and crime. In ... Read more
