Donald Trump Celebrates Ivanka Being Saved From Trial

Former President Donald Trump celebrated his daughter Ivanka Trump being spared as a defendant in his New York fraud trial while falsely claiming that he already "won" the case in an appeals court.

Trump returned to court in Manhattan on Thursday to attend one of the last hearings set to take place in the civil trial. New York State Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron, who is presiding over the trial, has already ruled in a summary judgment that Trump is liable for committing fraud, with the proceedings currently focusing on the extent to which he could be punished for the fraud.

While speaking briefly to reporters outside the trial, the former president blasted Engoron and praised a New York appeals court's June decision to remove Ivanka as a co-defendant. Trump falsely claimed that the appeals court decision—which removed claims that were outside of the statute of limitations—meant that he had already "won" the case but the "victory" was being ignored by Engoron.

"We won at the appellate division," Trump said. "Part of that victory was Ivanka not having to put herself through this. And they ruled that. But the bigger part of that was that about 90 percent, because of statute of limitations, about 90 percent of the case disappears."

"So, remember this," he continued. "We won the case at the appellate division. The high court. And this judge refuses to acknowledge that victory, or that demand."

Trump's trial is not deciding any of the claims that were effectively dismissed by the appeals court ruling. The June decision removed claims from before 2014, including all of the claims that could have directly implicated Ivanka.

While none of the excluded claims are being considered, some older evidence and related witness testimony have been used in efforts to prove active claims that took place within the statute of limitations.

In October, Engoron noted that the "statutes of limitations bar claims, not evidence" after Trump's lawyers claimed that he was ignoring the appeals court ruling.

Newsweek reached out for comment to Trump's office via email on Thursday.

New York Attorney General Letitia James is suing Trump for $250 million, based on claims that he illegally inflated his assets to obtain favorable business loans. While the case no longer involves Ivanka directly, the former president's two eldest sons, Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., remain co-defendants alongside their father and the Trump Organization.

Ivanka did testify at her father's trial last month following an Engoron ruling that compelled her to take part. Trump raged at the decision in a Truth Social post at the time, writing: "Now they are trying to bring Ivanka into the case, despite the Court of Appeals ruling that she cannot be charged. Sad!"