Trump Could Face Hefty Penalties, Elected or Not

Former President Donald Trump could be ordered to pay more than $563 million in civil penalties reached in two judgments against him, even if he wins the presidential election in November, a new analysis shows.

"It would be this kind of crazy thing unfolding with the lawyers collecting and trying to garner his real estate or, you know, take the classic sort of collection action against a president," Case Western Reserve University Law School professor Kevin McMunigal said, The Washington Examiner reported Friday.

Trump's attorneys will be in court in New York next week to appeal the $5 million in civil penalties awarded to Elle magazine columnist E. Jean Carroll in May 2023. A court found Trump liable for sexually assaulting her in the mid-1990s, which he strongly denies, and for defamation over the comments he made about her while he was president.

Carroll also won a much larger second defamation case, resulting in an $83 million judgment as a result of other comments Trump made about her and the case after he left office.

He has posted a $91 million bond to stay that judgment's enforcement.

Trump's attorneys are also heading to the New York Appellate Division, where they are arguing to dismiss a ruling reached in Judge Arthur Engeron's ruling in a New York case that found the former president had overstated the value of his assets so his company could get better rates on bank loans and insurance premiums.

According to calculations, Trump owes $475 million in the case, when interest is figured in.

If the appeals in the three cases go against the former president, he could have to shell out approximately 15% of his estimated net worth of $4.2 billion.

The appeals are expected to continue until after the Nov. 5 election, but collections could start on the civil penalties later this year.

Oral arguments are scheduled in the civil fraud case until the last week in September, with a ruling not coming until at least a month after the case concludes.

This means that the possibility that Trump could have to pay either judgment before the Nov. 5 election is "remote," said Michael O'Neill, vice president of the Landmark Legal Foundation.

Meanwhile, McMunigal said it's not certain if Trump will get to escalate his appeals to the New York Supreme Court, as it is not obligated to grant oral arguments.

"You don't automatically, typically have a right to go to the highest court. That's true with the U.S. Supreme Court. It's true with almost every top court," he said.

But Daniel Karon, a law professor at the University of Michigan Law School and Ohio State University, Trump's appeal could reach the top court, as a case like his will "likely get accepted" and that Trump could argue presidential immunity as a defense.

Legal experts, meanwhile, said the civil cases could harm Trump more than his criminal cases, as there is little to keep collections from starting even if he's elected.

There is also precedent about whether presidents can face civil damages taking place when they were not in office, O'Neill said.

He pointed to the 1997 case involving then-President Bill Clinton and Paula Jones, which found that he could be held liable on civil charges for actions taking place before he became president.

“I believe the principles outlined in this case would apply and that President Trump, even if elected, would be obligated to satisfy the judgments against him assuming the decisions are not reversed on appeal," he said.