Donald Trump’s lawyers have asked New York’s highest court to overturn his civil fraud liability finding, arguing that the case against him and his family should never have been brought. Their filing responds to Attorney General Letitia James’s attempt to restore a previously vacated monetary penalty and challenges the remaining business restrictions, making the appeal significant for Trump’s legal and commercial standing in New York.

James sued Trump in 2022 over alleged inflated property valuations, and he was found liable in 2023; the original judgment required $355 million plus interest and imposed temporary restrictions on his roles in New York companies and access to New York lending. Trump’s lawyers say James lacked authority because no public or private victims claimed losses, that lenders independently assessed the valuations, and that treating differing real-estate estimates as fraud is legally unsound. They also argue the roughly $450 million disgorgement was excessive and that the prosecution was politically motivated, while the article notes the intermediate appeals court had already removed the monetary award.