Former President Donald Trump and his company are facing challenges in securing a bond for the $464 million fraud judgment against them, according to their lawyers. The bond is necessary to prevent New York Attorney General Letitia James from collecting the amount during the appeal process. Despite efforts involving around 30 surety companies through four brokers and negotiations with one of the world’s largest insurance companies, obtaining a bond of the full judgment amount has been deemed “a practical impossibility.”
The legal team’s filing highlighted that surety companies are unwilling to accept hard assets like real estate as collateral, only considering cash or cash equivalents. They also require collateral of about 120% of the judgment amount, totaling around $557 million, in addition to charging bond premiums of approximately 2 percent per year, with an upfront cost over $18 million. This would necessitate around $1 billion in cash or equivalents to cover the bond and maintain operational and other financial obligations.
Trump’s legal argument suggests that the required bond is unaffordable and unnecessary since his substantial real estate assets, including 40 Wall Street, Doral Miami, and Mar-a-Lago, secure the judgment amount. They also argue that the $464 million penalty is excessive, maintaining that there were no victims, damages, or financial losses from the actions leading to the judgment.
In a previous filing, Trump’s lawyers proposed reducing the bond amount to $100 million and now argue that no bond should be required. Meanwhile, the Attorney General’s office insists on the full bond amount. This financial dilemma comes as Trump also secured a $91 million bond in a separate defamation case involving E. Jean Carroll.
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