Personal and business legal affairs of Donald Trump

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From 1973 until he was elected president in 2016, Donald Trump and his businesses were involved in over 4,000 legal cases in United States federal and state courts, including battles with casino patrons, million-dollar real estate lawsuits, personal defamation lawsuits, and over 100 business tax disputes.[1] He has also been accused of sexual harassment and sexual assault,[2][3] with one accusation resulting in him being held civilly liable.[4] One case involved a 13 year old child.

In 2015, Trump's lawyer Alan Garten called Trump's legal entanglements "a natural part of doing business" in the U.S.[5][6] While litigation is indeed common in the real estate industry,[5] Trump has been involved in more legal cases than his fellow magnates Edward J. DeBartolo Jr., Donald Bren, Stephen M. Ross, Sam Zell, and Larry Silverstein combined. Much of the lawsuits were filed against patrons with debt to his casinos. Of all cases with a clear resolution, Trump was the victor 92 percent of the time.[7]

Numerous legal matters and investigations occurred during and after Trump's presidency, some being of historical import. Between October 2021 and July 2022 alone, the Republican National Committee paid more than US$2 million to attorneys representing Trump in his presidential, personal, and business capacities.[8] In January 2023, a federal judge fined Trump and his attorney nearly $1 million, characterizing him as "a prolific and sophisticated litigant who is repeatedly using the courts to seek revenge on political adversaries".[9]

On December 6, 2022, the parent company of Trump's many businesses, The Trump Organization, was convicted on 17 criminal charges.[10][11][12]

Trump has been found liable for sexual abuse and defamation[4] and is appealing an order to pay more than $80 million in damages to the victim, E. Jean Carroll.[13][14] Trump, together with his associates, has also been found liable for fraud regarding overvaluation of The Trump Organization and Trump's net worth,[15] and is appealing a $364 million fine[16] plus $100 million interest.[17][18] In 2024, Trump was convicted on numerous counts of falsifying business records related to hush money payments to adult film actress Stormy Daniels,[19] although the sentencing has been delayed in light of a Supreme Court ruling that may have relevance to the case.[20]

In 2024,[21] Trump will also face trial on federal charges related to the 2020 election.[22] In 2025, Trump is expected to go to trial for federal charges relating to his handling of classified documents.[23]

  1. ^ Penzenstadler, Nick; Reilly, Steve (July 7, 2016). "Donald Trump: Three decades, 4,095 lawsuits". USA Today. Archived from the original on April 17, 2018. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
  2. ^ Zadrozny, Brandy (January 17, 2017). "Summer Zervos Suing Donald Trump for Defamation". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on January 17, 2017. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  3. ^ Stockman, Rachel (February 23, 2016). "Exclusive: Inside The $125 Million Donald Trump Sexual Assault Lawsuit". Law and Crime. Archived from the original on December 18, 2017. Retrieved December 19, 2017.
  4. ^ a b Queen, Jack; Cohen, Luc (May 9, 2023). "Jury finds Trump sexually abused writer E. Jean Carroll}, awards her $5 mln". Reuters. Archived from the original on May 9, 2023. Retrieved May 9, 2023.
  5. ^ a b Mullins, Brody; Oberman, Jim (March 13, 2016). "Trump's Long Trail of Litigation". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on April 15, 2016. Retrieved March 14, 2016. Litigation isn't unusual for resolving business disputes or enforcing contracts, particularly in the real-estate industry. It is difficult to determine whether Mr. Trump files more lawsuits than others with similarly broad business interests. The Republican Party has long argued that excessive litigation in the U.S. increases the costs of goods and services and limits job creation. Republican leaders have pushed, in particular, for medical-malpractice changes, to reduce fraud in the asbestos-claims process and to cut down on what they see as frivolous litigation in general. Mr. Trump's political opponents have cited his pattern of litigiousness to buttress their contention that he isn't a true conservative.
  6. ^ Isikoff, Michael (August 30, 2015). "How Trump could turn the presidency into a 'litigation circus'". Yahoo! Politics. Archived from the original on April 5, 2016. Retrieved August 31, 2015. He is a litigation magnet who has been the target (and the initiator) of hundreds of civil suits over the past several decades.... Indeed, Trump's penchant for litigation – and punching back against his critics in court – has shown no signs of abating while he is on the campaign trail.
  7. ^ Penzenstadler, Nick; Page, Susan (June 1, 2016). "Exclusive: Trump's 3,500 lawsuits unprecedented for a presidential nominee". USA TODAY. Archived from the original on June 2, 2016. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
  8. ^ Klein, Charlotte (July 28, 2022). "The RNC Has Been Bankrolling Trump's Legal Bills. If He Runs, They're Cutting Him Off". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on July 29, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  9. ^ Haberman, Maggie (January 31, 2023). "Trump's Well-Worn Legal Playbook Starts to Look Frayed". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on April 11, 2023. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
  10. ^ Protess, Ben; Bromwich, Jonah E.; Rashbaum, William K.; Fadulu, Lola (December 6, 2022). "Trump Organization Found Guilty in Tax Fraud Scheme". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 7, 2022. Retrieved December 6, 2022.
  11. ^ Kates, Graham (December 6, 2022). "Trump Organization companies found guilty on all charges in tax fraud trial in New York". CBS News. Archived from the original on December 6, 2022. Retrieved December 6, 2022.
  12. ^ Jacobs, Shayna (December 6, 2022). "Trump Organization convicted in N.Y. criminal tax fraud trial". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on March 29, 2023. Retrieved December 6, 2022. Two Trump Organization entities — the Trump Corporation and the Trump Payroll Corp. — were on trial. Both were found guilty on all charges.
  13. ^ Boboltz, Sara (January 26, 2024). "Jury Awards E. Jean Carroll Over $80 Million In Case Against Trump". HuffPost. Archived from the original on January 27, 2024. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
  14. ^ Stempel, Jonathan (April 25, 2024). "US judge upholds $83.3 million defamation loss, rejects new trial". Reuters. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  15. ^ Scannell, Kara; del Valle, Lauren (September 26, 2023). "New York judge finds Donald Trump liable for fraud". CNN. Archived from the original on November 15, 2023. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  16. ^ Bustillo, Ximena (February 16, 2024). "Trump ordered to pay over $355M for fraudulent business practices in New York". NPR. Archived from the original on February 16, 2024. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
  17. ^ Scannell, Kara (February 23, 2024). "Judge formally says Trump owes $454 million in civil fraud case, countdown starts for him to put up the money for appeal". CNN. Archived from the original on February 26, 2024. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  18. ^ Queen, Jack (April 1, 2024). "Trump posts $175 million bond in civil fraud case, averting asset seizures". Reuters. Retrieved April 1, 2024.
  19. ^ The Editorial Board (May 30, 2024). "Donald Trump, Felon". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 31, 2024. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
  20. ^ Kates, Graham (July 2, 2024). "Trump sentencing delayed as judge in 'hush money' case weighs Supreme Court immunity ruling". CBS. Archived from the original on August 23, 2024. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  21. ^ Polantz, Katelyn; Lybrand, Holmes (February 2, 2024). "Federal judge in Trump's DC election interference case postpones trial". CNN. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
  22. ^ Sneed, Tierney; Lybrand, Holmes; Cohen, Marshall; Cohen, Zachary; Cole, Devan; Rabinowitz, Hannah; Polantz, Katelyn (August 1, 2023). "Donald Trump has been indicted in special counsel's 2020 election interference probe". CNN. Archived from the original on August 1, 2023. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
  23. ^ Berman, Dan; Polantz, Katelyn (June 5, 2024). "Judge Cannon expands hearing on Trump's request to declare special counsel's appointment invalid". CNN. Archived from the original on August 23, 2024. Retrieved June 5, 2024.