Lawyers for former President Donald Trump filed paperwork with the appeals court in New York asking for the $500 million civil fraud verdict against him to be overturned because it is "egregious" and "erroneous."
Trump's main arguments against the huge civil penalty were that some of the allegations were past the statute of limitations, no one was harmed by Trump's actions, and that other businesses will leave the state if the huge fine is found to be legitimate.
The brief was 116 pages long, and among other points it made was that the verdict effectively gives Attorney General Letitia James "limitless power to target anyone she desires, including her self-described political opponents."
A lot of the arguments against Judge Arthur Engoron's judgment against Trump were similar to ones he presented during the trial, but that doesn't mean the appeals court won't find them valid. Trump's lawyers called the verdict "draconian" and said it "violates centuries of New York case law."
If the court determines that Engoron ignored valid grounds for dismissal, it could upend the entire verdict and James's gleeful threats to seize his property if he doesn't pay up.
Trump posted a bond of $175 million after no bond agency would give him the full amount. If he wins the appeal, he will get it all back.
Trump is on a roll with legal victories. The Supreme Court threw a major monkey wrench into the criminal indictments against him by declaring he has immunity for all official acts and some others.
The classified documents case against him was then dropped by Judge Aileen Cannon because she determined that Special Counsel Jack Smith was illegally appointed.
The Georgia election interference case has been postponed until after the election, and the sentencing for the New York falsified business documents case has been postponed until mid-September with the judge expressing doubt about whether it could even take place because of the immunity ruling.
These cases were trumped up by Democrat prosecutors in Democrat-dominated areas, and they're all falling apart under scrutiny by courts with actual legitimacy like the Supreme Court.
The whole idea was to make Trump look like a criminal so no one would want to vote for him in November, but that has backfired spectacularly and the majority are not buying any of it.
Oral arguments in this case that was intended to hurt him financially will be in September, although it's still New York and he may not have a great chance of a fair verdict here.
Some of Trump's arguments were already considered by the same court and rejected.
He may have to go to the Supreme Court yet again for relief.
