Ivanka Trump Ordered to Testify in Person at Dad Donald's Civil Fraud Trial, Judge Rules
Ivanka Trump was ordered to testify in person at her father Donald Trump’s ongoing civil fraud trial in New York, RadarOnline.com can report.
In the latest development to come as former President Trump remains on trial for fraud in Manhattan, the judge overseeing the case – Judge Arthur Engoron – ruled that Ivanka must testify in person in connection to the matter.
“I want to see her in person,” Judge Engoron ruled on Friday. “That is how we prefer testimony.”
According to the New York Post, the judge made his decision shortly after hearing arguments from both Ivanka and ex-President Trump’s lawyers regarding why the former first daughter should not be ordered to testify in the case.
Judge Engoron also ruled that former President Trump’s eldest daughter would not testify in court before November 1, and Ivanka’s team is reportedly expected to appeal his Friday ruling.
As RadarOnline.com previously reported, Ivanka was initially named as a co-defendant in the $250 million fraud lawsuit brought against the Trump Organization by New York Attorney General Letitia James last year.
The 41-year-old Trump was ultimately dismissed as a defendant in the case in June after a New York appeals court ruled that the allegations against Ivanka “fell outside the state’s statute of limitations.”
The state appeals court also ruled that additional allegations against Ivanka occurred after the former first daughter “stepped back” from her role within the Trump Organization.
“The allegations against defendant Ivanka Trump do not support any claims that accrued after February 6, 2016,” the court’s June ruling said. “Thus, all claims against her should have been dismissed as untimely.”
A spokesperson for ex-President Trump said that the appeals court’s decision to dismiss Ivanka as a defendant in June was the “first step” towards “ending” the case against the former commander-in-chief and his organization.
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“The Appellate Division decision today represents the first step towards ending a case that should have never been filed,” the Trump spokesperson said over the summer.
“The correct application of the law will now limit appropriately the previously unlimited reach of the Attorney General.”
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Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Attorney General James’ office said that there was still “a mountain of evidence that shows” the embattled ex-president committed fraud in New York.
“Those facts haven’t changed,” the New York attorney general’s spokesperson said. “This decision allows us to hold him accountable for that fraud, and we intend to do so.”
As RadarOnline.com reported, Judge Engoron ruled in September that ex-President Trump was liable for committing fraud in New York by defrauding banks and insurers while building his real estate empire.
Although the judge already ruled that Trump and his company committed fraud, the current trial involves remaining claims of conspiracy, insurance fraud, and falsifying business records.