- Trump's bail in his civil fraud trial was reduced to $175 million, citing difficulties with his team securing funding.
- ProPublica reports that a billionaire businessman has offered to cover the original $464 million owed.
- ProPublica revealed that Trump's legal team may have violated ethics rules by not reporting the proposal.
Donald Trump's recent claims that he could not afford bail in his civil fraud trial may have misled the court, according to a new ProPublica report.
The newspaper reported Friday that even though Trump's lawyers called the original $464 million an “impossible bond request” and claimed it had been rejected by 30 companies approached for financing, the former president has already It was reported that he had received an offer from a billionaire. Businessman Don Hankey will account for the entire amount.
“When I saw the rejection from everyone, I said, 'Hey, this doesn't seem like a hard bond to post,'” Hankey told ProPublica. Mr. Hankey told the outlet that he contacted Mr. Trump's representatives in the days before the bond reduction and expressed his intention to use real estate as collateral for the loan, but Mr. Trump's lawyers said that other companies He was indicating that he didn't want to do that.
Bail was eventually reduced to $175 million, which was issued by Hankey's business, Knight Specialty Insurance Company, after Mr. Trump saved hundreds of millions of dollars.
Hankey told the outlet that although he is a Trump supporter, he would have made the deal regardless of his personal beliefs. He said the former president's struggle to secure appeal bonds was not due to a lack of liquidity to back up the trades, but that public companies could “offend 45% of the public” by openly supporting Trump. “Maybe they don't want it to happen,” he suggested.
It remains unclear whether Trump's legal team was aware of Hankey's negotiations with Trump's representatives. It resulted in the full accounting of the $464 million that was in progress at the time the bonds were written down. However, legal experts told Business Insider that his lawyers may have violated ethics rules if they knew about the offer and did not notify the court.
After the outlet contacted Trump's representatives, Hankey contacted ProPublica again. In a second conversation, he told ProPublica that accepting Trump's real estate as collateral would have been complicated and the deal would have been “difficult.”
What happened now?
According to the New York State Bar Association, lawyers must follow the New York State Rules of Professional Conduct adopted by the Appellate Division of the state Supreme Court.
The NYSBA's website states, “Lawyers who violate the law or fail to comply with this Code of Conduct are subject to disciplinary action, including reprimand, reprimand, censure, suspension, and disbarment.” .
Two legal experts told Business Insider that if Mr. Trump's lawyers had known that Mr. Hankey had filed a motion with the court to reduce his bail, it would likely be an ethical violation. Told.
Former federal prosecutor Neema Rahmani told Business Insider: “If Mr. Trump's lawyers knew that Mr. Trump could secure full bond on appeal, their false statements were an ethical violation. “It could amount to fraud in court.” But he noted that it would be difficult to prove what Mr. Trump's lawyers knew and when they knew it.
Andrew Reeve, a litigator and legal analyst, told Business Insider. The conduct of Mr. Trump's lawyers in this matter appears to be a “clear violation” of Rule 3.3 of the New York State Rules of Professional Conduct. The rules stipulate that lawyers must not intentionally make false statements of fact to the court and must “take reasonable corrective measures.” ” Includes disclosure to the court if you learn of a falsehood.
“If Mr. Trump's lawyers are found to have violated this rule, they should be prepared to face ethics charges, which could result in everything from personal correspondence in their files to suspensions,” Reeve told BI. “Any disciplinary action may be taken.''
He added: “Furthermore, it doesn't matter when you learn because the rules require you to take reasonable corrective action to correct falsities in evidence or statements, even if you learn after the fact.” Ta. ”
The Trump campaign, lawyers representing the former president in his civil fraud case, and representatives from Knight Specialty Insurance Company did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.
