The judge ruled that Ivanka Trump must testify in her father’s civil fraud trial in New York.

Ivanka Trump’s attorneys filed a motion to have a subpoena for her testimony quashed in New York, but Judge Arthur Engoron denied the motion and ordered that her testimony not be scheduled before Wednesday so that she could file an appeal.

After an appeals court dismissed Ivanka Trump as a defendant, her lawyer argued that she should not be compelled to appear in court, CNN reported.

The judge added that Ivanka Trump was required to submit an affidavit stating that she no longer resides or works in the state. Because “only she can tell us that,” and “it’s too late to do that now,” Engoron said.

As expected, Engoron refused to accept a deposition from Ivanka Trump that had been taken in Florida after he made his initial ruling. Engoron stated, “We want her here in person,” indicating his preference for live testimony.

Ivanka Trump’s legal team has accused New York Attorney General Letitia James of seeking her testimony for the sake of creating a media spectacle, arguing that the court lacks jurisdiction over Ivanka Trump because she has not lived or worked in the state of New York since 2017.

Kise called the subpoena “continued harassment of President Trump’s children.”

Advertisement

“They just want another free-for-all on one of President Trump’s children,” Kise said. “They want her in the courtroom so it can be filled with media and we can have another circus day.”

James filed a $250 million lawsuit against the Trump family in September of last year, alleging that the former president and his eldest children engaged in a massive fraud scheme lasting over a decade to enrich themselves, with Ivanka Trump initially listed as a co-defendant along with Donald Trump, Eric Trump, Donald Trump Jr., and several Trump Organization executives.

On the other hand, Ivanka Trump was not included in the agreement between James’ office and the Trump Organization in August 2021 to toll the statute of limitations, so a New York appeals court dismissed her as a co-defendant in June.

The office of the New York attorney general had still listed Ivanka Trump as a possible witness they could call in the case.

Ivanka Trump’s lawyer, Bennet Moskowitz, argued that the court lacks jurisdiction over her because she has not regularly resided or worked in New York since 2017. He even said he could produce an affidavit from Ivanka stating as much.

Moskowitz argued that since she is no longer involved in the case, neither are the New York corporations to which the AG’s office sent the subpoena.

Attorney Cliff Robert said that Eric Trump is willing to serve as the Trump Organization’s representative because he must testify at trial.

Kevin Wallace, an attorney for the Attorney General’s Office, argued that Ivanka Trump still has ties to the Trump Organization and is familiar with a loan for the Old Post Office renovation in Washington, DC.

According to the attorney general’s complaint, Ivanka Trump allegedly committed fraud on a loan from Deutsche Bank given to Trump and his business for the Old Post Office project.

“She ran that project, not Eric Trump,” Wallace claimed.

According to Wallace, Ivanka Trump was only looking out for herself when she negotiated the loan with Deutsche Bank because of the money she made off of the Old Post Office deal.

Engoron questioned the attorney general’s office about the possibility of focusing her interrogation on the Old Post Office loan with Deutsche Bank.

Trump appeared to stun his Secret Service detail on Wednesday when he suddenly stormed out of the Manhattan courtroom after tense exchanges with the judge.

Advertisement

According to reports, Trump’s temper got the best of him when Engoron deemed him “not credible” and hit him with another fine for allegedly violating a gag order that prevented him from speaking out against Engoron’s court staff.

Trump exclaimed, “Unbelievable,” under his breath, threw up his arms, and then stormed out of the courtroom.

Outside of it, he told reporters, “The witness just admitted that we won the trial, and the judge should end this trial immediately.”