Ivanka Trump throws brother and father under bus in New York fraud case

Ivanka Trump, the eldest daughter of former President Donald Trump, has asked for a stay in adjudicating the $250 million fraud case brought against her, her brothers, her father and their family’s eponymous real estate company because a defense claimed that they’re responsible for fraudulent financial statements issued by the company, it takes more time to prepare.

In court filings, Mrs. Trump’s attorneys argue that the fraud complaint filed last year against her and her co-defendants by New York Attorney General Letitia James “contains no allegation that Mrs. Trump directly or indirectly created, prepared, reviewed, or certified one of her father’s accounts”.

“Other individuals were responsible for those duties,” her lawyers wrote.

The judge overseeing the fraud case, New York State Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron, has said the Oct. 2 trial will begin on time “whether in hell or high water,” but the request for Ms. Trump’s deferment refers to the “unique” circumstances of her role in the case, noting that she has not been accused of lying about her father’s finances, despite her former role as a top executive at the Trump Organization.

Her lawyers also said the case is “not easy” because she resigned from her role at the company in 2017 to take a position in her father’s administration.

Ms Trump’s father has also asked for the trial to be postponed, arguing that a later start date is “out of necessity”, in part due to the “stunning volume” against the company.

“The current schedule makes preparing a defense impossible,” lawyers Alina Habba and Clifford Robert wrote in court filings. Fundamental notions of fair play and due process require that defendants be given every opportunity to prepare a meaningful defense, rather than an impossible schedule forced upon them.

In response, lawyers from Ms. James’s office in litigation have said there would be “no unfair detriment to defendants under the existing scheme” and said the Trumps’ “alleged hardships are self-inflicted”.

“Suspects have had ample time and opportunity to familiarize themselves with the case. Instead, they waited until the eve of the fact discovery deadline to just begin their discovery process to prepare for trial, and now they are seeking more time,” the attorney general’s office said. general.