Legal experts are analyzing former president Donald Trump’s options after he said he is unable to secure the $464 million appeal bond required following a civil fraud judgment against him in New York.
While Trump’s lawyers argue the bond amount is a “practical impossibility,” experts say the judge should give more leeway given no one has that kind of liquid funds.
“Not even the richest man in the world has $464 million lying around,” criminal defense attorney David Gelman said.
Trump could ask to use property as collateral, challenge the New York law in federal court as unconstitutional, or drop the appeal.
Some say the bond violates the 8th Amendment ban on excessive fines.
“There has never been a judgment of this magnitude against a company or individual in the history of New York, so we are really in uncharted territory,” Gelman said.
“Courts really don’t deny bonds when there are other ways to pay. Again, because this is so unprecedented, and I don’t care how rich you are, nobody has that much liquid cash. So if a court had the option to allow a defendant to use some other collateral to satisfy the bond, they will,” Gelman said.
“You’re dealing with Trump. He’s not going anywhere. He’s the most famous and well known person in the world. It’s not like he can just disappear and can’t be found,” Gelman said.
If the appeal is denied, Trump could still challenge it in federal court and the Supreme Court.
Even if the court is to deny Trump’s appeal, he “still has paths to move forward through federal court – ultimately to the Supreme Court to complain about Eight Amendment violations,” former federal prosecutor Andrew Cherkasky stated.
“I think – and I hope – that the New York Court of Appeals looks at it appropriately,” Cherkasky said. “But like I said, I think even the Supreme Court would have an interest in this case on Eighth Amendment grounds.”
His lawyers expressed confidence the debt will ultimately be dismissed.
Legal analysts say Trump has avenues left to pursue and the case raises novel constitutional issues around imposing massive bonds individuals cannot reasonably pay.
“Despite the fact that witnesses frankly had said that they were great clients, we all made money, they did nothing wrong, we got slammed with this egregious number, and I’m confident we’ll overturn it,” Trump attorney Alina Habba said.
“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,” Trump wrote.
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