In a recent turn of events, a higher court has swiftly denied Ivanka Trump’s plea to postpone her impending testimony in her father’s civil fraud trial. This denial comes in the wake of her claim that she would endure “undue hardship” if compelled to appear during a school week.
Ivanka Trump’s attorney had argued that “Ms. Trump, who resides in Florida with her three minor children, will suffer undue hardship if a stay is denied and she is required to testify at trial in New York in the middle of a school week, in a case she has already been dismissed from, before her appeal is heard.” This appeal sought not only to halt the order for her testimony but also to pause the entire fraud trial involving former President Donald Trump, two of his adult sons, and his company until her appeal could be reviewed.
However, the motion for a stay was promptly denied in a filing on Thursday night.
Previously, New York Judge Arthur Engoron had ordered Ivanka Trump to testify during the trial, rejecting her attorney’s motion to quash a subpoena. Following the denial of her appeal, Ivanka Trump’s attorney further requested the appeals court to stay the ruling requiring her testimony and to halt the trial itself.
Ivanka Trump’s legal team has consistently argued that the New York civil court lacks jurisdiction to compel her testimony, citing her absence from New York since 2017 and her dismissal as a co-defendant in June. The New York appeals court had dismissed her as a co-defendant, citing the statute of limitations in relation to an August 2021 agreement between New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office and the Trump Organization.