Trump appeals ‘egregious’ $454m civil fraud verdict claiming it hands New York attorney general ‘limitless power’

Donald Trump is seeking to overturn the $454m New York civil fraud ruling that threatens his financial health as he makes his third bid for the White House.

In February, Justice Arthur Engoron hit the former president, his sonsEric and Donald Trump Jr, and top executives at the Trump Organization with the multi-million-dollar judgment after finding that they lied to banks and insurers by inflating his net worth in order to secure more favorable loans.

On Monday, Trump’s legal team appealed the judgment, slamming it as “egregious”, “erroneous” and “draconian” and claiming that it handed New York Attorney General Letitia James “limitless power”.

In the 95-page filing, filed with the Appellate Division of the state’s trial courts, his attorneys claimed that the judgement “violates centuries of New York case law”.

His lawyers also argued that James, who brought the civil lawsuit against Trump in September 2022, was attempting to facilitate an “unauthorized, unprecedented power grab” and that failing to dismiss the judgement would bestow the attorney general “limitless power to target anyone she desires, including her self-described political opponents”.

In a statement, Trump’s attorney Christopher Kise said the appeal “seeks reversal of the trial court’s legally bereft decisions”.

James’ office responded to the appeal in a statement to The Associated Press: “We won this case based on the facts and the law, and we are confident we will prevail on appeal.”

Engoron presided over the civil fraud trial and ruled on February 16 that Trump must pay $355m in penalties after he had “blatantly false financial data” to secure favorable business terms.

Interest continues to accrue on the judgment, with the total sum growing to more