In December 2021, New York's Attorney General Letitia James sought to question Donald Trump under oath about how his company valued its properties, a request that surfaced quietly through a single anonymous source and was met with silence from both sides. It is one thread in a larger weaving of scrutiny that has followed the Trump Organization for years, where a civil inquiry into property values sits beside a criminal tax case already brought against the firm and its chief financial officer. Trump has not been accused of wrongdoing in either matter, yet the pattern of questions around money,
NY Attorney General Seeks to Depose Trump Under Oath in Civil Fraud Probe
Trump has not been accused of wrongdoing in either probe.
Mark
Start simply. What exactly is being asked of Trump?
Mimi
Attorney General Letitia James wants him to answer questions under oath on January 7 at her New York office. The subject is how the Trump Organization ran its business, specifically how it reported property values to banks and tax authorities.
Mark
Is this a criminal matter?
Mimi
No, this is the civil side. Her office is deciding whether to sue the company. The criminal case is separate and run by the Manhattan district attorney, though James's office is assisting it.
Luke
Before we go further, how solid is the January 7 date?
Mimi
It comes from one source familiar with the matter, and The Washington Post reported it first. Her spokesman and Trump's lawyer both declined to comment.
Luke
So it's reported, not confirmed on the record.
Mimi
Right, and that's worth keeping in mind.
Mark
Is Trump accused of anything?
Mimi
No. He hasn't been accused of wrongdoing in either probe. The company and its CFO, Allen Weisselberg, have been charged with tax fraud and pleaded not guilty.
Mark
How has Trump responded to James?
Mimi
He has called her investigation corrupt and a politically motivated witch hunt. She did say she would go after him if elected, which is part of why he frames it that way.
Luke
But a campaign promise isn't evidence about the merits of the probe. The reporting doesn't tell us what her office has found.
Mimi
Correct. We don't know what the investigation has uncovered, or whether a suit will follow.
Mark
And her dropping the governor's race?
Mimi
She cited the investigations underway as her reason. Whether the Trump matter specifically drove it, the reporting doesn't say.
Le Pouls
- A request for Trump's sworn testimony on January 7 has landed with the weight of a deadline no one has yet confirmed.
- Both the Attorney General's office and Trump's lawyer declined to comment, leaving the story resting on one unnamed source.
- A civil fraud probe into how property values were reported to banks and tax authorities is closing in on the Trump Organization.
- A parallel Manhattan criminal tax case against the company and CFO Allen Weisselberg, both pleading not guilty, keeps the pressure on.
- Trump calls the investigation a politically motivated witch hunt, while the Attorney General weighs a civil suit that could follow.
In December 2021, New York's Attorney General Letitia James sought to question Donald Trump under oath about how his company valued its properties, a request that surfaced quietly through a single anonymous source and was met with silence from both sides. It is one thread in a larger weaving of scrutiny that has followed the Trump Organization for years, where a civil inquiry into property values sits beside a criminal tax case already brought against the firm and its chief financial officer. Trump has not been accused of wrongdoing in either matter, yet the pattern of questions around money, valuation, and power continues to press on the institution he built.
New York Attorney General Letitia James has asked Donald Trump to sit for a deposition under oath on January 7, at her office in New York. The request, first reported by The Washington Post and confirmed to NBC News by a source familiar with the matter, concerns the business practices of the Trump Organization. Neither James's office nor Trump's lawyer, Ronald Fischetti, would comment on it.
The deposition would be part of a civil investigation into whether the company misreported the value of certain properties to banks and tax authorities. Her office is weighing a civil suit against the company, though no decision has been made public. Separately, the Manhattan district attorney has charged the company and its chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg, with tax fraud, and both have pleaded not guilty. James's office is assisting that criminal case.
Trump has not been accused of wrongdoing in either probe, but he has called the civil inquiry corrupt and a witch hunt. James, a Democrat who campaigned on going after him, recently dropped a run for governor to seek re-election, citing her ongoing investigations. Her office already deposed Trump's son Eric late last year. Trump, who faces at least ten civil lawsuits, has sat for depositions before.
What remains open is whether Trump appears on January 7, whether the date becomes a dispute, and whether the civil inquiry turns into a lawsuit against the company.
New York Attorney General Letitia James has asked Donald Trump to sit for a deposition under oath on January 7, according to a source familiar with the matter who spoke to NBC News. The session would take place at her office in New York, and the questions would concern the business practices of the Trump Organization. The request was first reported by The Washington Post.
The deposition would be one piece of James's civil investigation into whether the company committed fraud in how it reported the value of certain properties to banks and to tax authorities. Her office is weighing whether to file a civil suit against the company, and no decision on that has been reported.
Neither side would discuss the request. James's spokesman, Fabien Levy, declined to comment, and so did Trump's lawyer, Ronald Fischetti. The account of the January 7 date therefore rests on a single unnamed source, relayed through two news organizations.
The civil inquiry is not the only legal pressure on the company. James's office is also assisting a criminal investigation led by the Manhattan district attorney into alleged tax fraud schemes at the Trump Organization. Earlier this year, the district attorney's office charged the company and its chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg, with tax fraud. Both have pleaded not guilty.
Trump himself has not been accused of wrongdoing in either probe. He has nonetheless been a sharp critic of James and her investigation, calling it "corrupt" and describing it as a politically motivated "witch hunt." Lawyers from her office have already questioned a member of the family in this inquiry: they deposed Trump's son Eric late last year.
James is a Democrat who vowed to go after Trump if she was elected attorney general, which gives his political objections a particular target. In October she announced a run for governor. On Thursday she dropped out of that race to campaign for re-election as attorney general, citing "a number of important investigations and cases that are underway."
Trump is no stranger to depositions. He is facing at least 10 civil lawsuits and sat for a court-ordered deposition in one of them this fall.
What to watch is whether Trump agrees to appear on January 7 or whether the date becomes a point of contention, and whether James's office moves from investigation to a civil suit against the company. The Manhattan criminal case against the Trump Organization and Weisselberg continues on its own track.
Citations marquantes
James dropped her run for governor to seek re-election, citing "a number of important investigations and cases that are underway."— Letitia James, New York Attorney General
Trump has called the investigation "corrupt" and a politically motivated "witch hunt."— Donald Trump, as reported by NBC News
Envie de l'histoire complète ?
Lire l'original sur NBC News ↗
Politics & Governance