Judge Arthur Engoron, who ordered former President Donald Trump to pay $454 million after finding him liable for business fraud, is refusing to recuse himself in the case.
In an appeal of the case, Trump’s lawyers have asked the judge to step aside. They say he should do so because he engaged in “prohibited communications” with a real estate lawyer regarding the case before he ultimately rendered his decision.
In an order issued on Thursday, Engoron wrote:
“I am supremely confident in my ability to continue to serve, as I always have, impartially.”
The judge added that since he’s presided over this case for more than three years, recusing himself would only result in “immense prejudice.”
The day that Engoron released his verdict in the case, NBC published an interview with Adam Bailey, who is a real estate lawyer. In the article, Bailey said:
“[I] had the ability to speak to [this Court] three weeks ago. … I saw him in the corner [at the courthouse] and I told my client, ‘I need to go.’ And I walked over and we started talking. … I wanted him to know what I think [about the case] and why. … I really want him to get it right.”
Later on, Bailey spoke to CNN, saying he spoke with the judge about the summary judgment decision he handed down in September only “because that’s the only thing I discussed with reporters.”
Yet, NBC has said that it stands by the reporting it did for its original story.
Trump’s legal team has based its request for Engoron to step aside on the story that NBC published.
For his part, Engoron said the “90-second incident” between he and Bailey was a “nothingburger” from a “landlord-tenant lawyer ranting.” The judge further added that he didn’t base even one part of the ruling he made in Trump’s case on what Bailey had said to him.
As Engoron wrote:
“I did not initiate, welcome, encourage, engage in or learn from, much less enjoy, Bailey’s tirade. I did not base any part of any of my rulings on it, as Bailey has outlandishly, mistakenly and defamatorily claimed.”
In addition, Engoron said he wasn’t aware of an investigation that was being undertaken by the Commission on Judicial Conduct. The judge said the review group hasn’t contacted him at all.
The official appeal in the New York business fraud case was filed on Monday by Trump’s lawyers, who are seeking to have the civil judgment on him reversed.
In the appeal, the lawyers said the ruling was “erroneous” and “egregious.”
They argue that the lawsuit, brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat, should have immediately been dismissed. They further claimed that the alleged fraud didn’t harm anyone, that some of the allegations were barred due to statute of limitations, and that the involvement James had in private business transitions ultimately threatens to drive more business out of New York.
