A New York appeals court has agreed to reduce former president Donald Trump’s fine in his civil fraud case from £359 million ($454 million) to £138 million ($175 million).
This comes after Trump claimed he would have to sell his properties to raise cash for the bond. The GOP nominee has 10 days to post the new bond.
The ruling on Monday means that Trump may be able to move forward with his appeal without the risk of his assets being seized by New York Attorney General Letitia James for lack of payment.
Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social on Monday morning: “There should be no FINE. I did nothing wrong!
“Why should I be forced to sell my ‘babies’ because a CORRUPT NEW YORK JUDGE & A.G. SET A FAKE AND RIDICULOUS NUMBER.”
READ MORE: Donald Trump rages at ‘corrupt’ system as £359m bond deadline looms
After saying they could not secure a bond, Trump’s attorneys claimed they did not want to sell his properties at “fire sale” prices to come up with the funds. His lawyers also claimed it was “a practical impossibility” to get an underwriter to sign off on a bond for the initial large sum of $454 million.
Monday’s ruling was issued by the state’s intermediate appeals court, the Appellate Division of the state’s trial court, where Trump is fighting to overturn a judge’s Feb. 16 finding that he lied about his wealth as he grew the real estate empire that launched him to stardom and the presidency.
After James won the judgment, she didn’t seek to enforce it during a legal time-out for Trump to ask the appeals court for a reprieve from paying up.
That period ended Monday, though James could have decided to allow Trump more time.
James, a Democrat, told ABC News last month that if Trump doesn’t have the money to pay, she would seek to seize his assets and was “prepared to make sure that the judgment is paid.”
In a separate trial, Trump appeared at a Manhattan court on Monday for his criminal “hush money” case.
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