Lawyers in Trump’s trial are ordered to clam up about judge’s communications
Breaking Legal News
The judge in Donald Trump’s civil business fraud trial barred attorneys in the case Friday from commenting on “confidential communications” between him and his staff, after the former president’s attorneys renewed claims that a clerk is poisoning the proceedings.
Threatening “serious sanctions” for any violations, Judge Arthur Engoron expanded on a prior gag order that prohibited parties in the trial from speaking publicly about court staffers. The earlier order didn’t mention the parties’ attorneys, but Engoron had suggested Thursday he might expand it.
The matter seized attention on a day when Eric Trump, one of the former president’s sons and a top executive in the family business, wrapped up his testimony. He said he relied completely on accountants and lawyers to assure the accuracy of financial documents that are key to New York Attorney General Letitia James’ lawsuit.
The state lawsuit accuses Trump and his company of deceiving banks and insurers by exaggerating his wealth on his annual financial statements. Trump and other defendants, including sons Eric and Donald Trump Jr., deny the allegations.
The former president and current Republican 2024 front-runner is due to testify Monday in the case, which threatens the real estate empire that launched him into the public eye and, eventually, politics.
Like the earlier gag order, the new one was sparked by criticism of the judge’s principal law clerk, Allison Greenfield. She has unexpectedly become a lightning rod during the trial.
Related listings
-
McCarthy juggles a government shutdown and a Biden impeachment inquiry
Breaking Legal News 09/11/2023House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is a man who stays in motion — enthusiastically greeting tourists at the Capitol, dashing overseas last week to the G7 summit of industrial world leaders, and raising funds back home to elect fellow Republicans to t...
-
White House is taking on corporate mergers, landlord junk fees
Breaking Legal News 07/19/2023The Biden administration on Wednesday proposed new guidelines for corporate mergers, took steps to disclose the junk fees charged by landlords and launched a crackdown on price-gouging in the food industry.The announcements will be discussed as part ...
-
President Biden to end COVID-19 emergencies on May 11
Breaking Legal News 01/30/2023President Joe Biden informed Congress on Monday that he will end the twin national emergencies for addressing COVID-19 on May 11, as most of the world has returned closer to normalcy nearly three years after they were first declared.The move to end t...