Lawyers for former president and presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump say coming up with the bond on roughly half a billion dollars while he appeals his New York fraud judgment is a "practical impossibility."
Trump's lawyers say they've approached 30 companies through four brokers and none will accept his real estate holdings as a guarantee on the bond for $454 million and argue the judgment is unconstitutionally high. They filed an affidavit from an insurance broker saying it is "not possible" to find a bond that big. The broker was an expert witness for Trump during the trial.
The trial judge already noted in his decision that this broker was a "close personal friend" of Trump's and had a financial interest in the outcome. A decision could come from the appeals court later this week.
Trump is on the hook for "persistently lying about the value of his assets" in a case brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James in 2022. Trump is seeking a reprieve from an appellate court to keep New York from seizing assets.
