‘Frivolous’: New York decide says wont delay Trump’s defamation claims trial

A New York federal decide expressed rising impatience Friday with what he calls ex-President Donald Trump’s “repeated efforts to delay” a defamation lawsuit towards him, saying he gained’t cease a January trial to await the end result of a “frivolous” attraction of considered one of his rulings.

Judge Lewis A Kaplan made the remarks in a written ruling as he criticized arguments made by Trump’s legal professionals in asking him to mothball the 2019 civil claims by a New York columnist who says Trump raped her in a luxurious Manhattan division retailer dressing room in spring 1996.

“This case was largely stalled for years due in large part to Trump’s repeated efforts to delay,” Kaplan wrote. “Trump’s latest motion to stay — his fourth such request — is yet another such attempt to delay unduly the resolution of this matter.”

The ruling will increase the probability that Trump will face the defamation lawsuit on Jan 15, simply as main season begins in his quest to turn out to be the Republican nominee for president subsequent yr. The Iowa Republican caucuses are being held that day.

Meanwhile, Trump faces 4 legal indictments elsewhere. In two circumstances, he was accused of looking for to overturn the outcomes of the 2020 presidential election. He additionally faces a categorized paperwork case in Florida and fees that he helped organize a payoff to porn actor Stormy Daniels to silence her earlier than the 2016 election. He has denied all fees.

In May, a jury awarded the author, E Jean Carroll, $5 million in damages, concluding she was sexually abused and defamed by Trump, although she was not raped. Her legal professionals now search one other $10 million in compensatory damages and “substantially more” in punitive damages for remarks he made whereas president and after the jury verdict.

The defamation portion of the award pertained to remarks Trump made final October when he rejected realizing Carroll and insisted the sexual assault had by no means occurred and he was by no means within the retailer together with her.

Before reaching its verdict, the jury heard the 79-year-old author testify at size about how her romantic life nearly ended after Trump turned a enjoyable, flirtatious likelihood encounter at a Bergdorf Goodman retailer right into a violent assault. Trump, 77, didn’t attend the trial.

Defamation claims pertaining to remarks Trump made in 2019 after Carroll revealed her rape claims for the primary time publicly in a memoir and remarks he made after May’s verdict can be thought-about on the January trial.

Carroll’s legal professionals are planning for the January trial to consist solely of a damages part, counting on the May jury’s verdict concerning sexual abuse.

Kaplan has rejected Trump’s claims that he’s entitled to immunity as a result of he was president when he commented in 2019.

His legal professionals requested Kaplan to place the January plans on maintain, saying there was a considerable probability Trump would succeed on attraction.

Kaplan stated Friday the arguments have been “without merit” and Trump had “shown no likelihood of success on appeal.”

Thus, Kaplan dominated, “this Court certifies that Trump’s appeal is frivolous.”

Lawyers for Trump didn’t instantly return e-mail messages looking for remark.

Edited By:

Manisha Pandey

Published On:

Aug 19, 2023