New York's top court has declined to take up an appeal by former United States President Donald Trump and two of his adult children, paving the way for the Trumps to sit for depositions next month in the ongoing real estate investigation.
The appeal was dismissed by the New York Court of Appeals "upon the ground that no substantial constitutional question is directly involved." The former president, Donald Trump Jr., and Ivanka Trump have now exhausted their appeals and are required to sit for depositions starting on July 15.
Trump Deposition
The New York Attorney General's Office has been investigating the potential discrepancies in how the Trump Organization valued certain assets when seeking loans or when pursuing tax breaks. The Republican businessman has long denied any wrongdoing in the years-long investigation.
In May, a state appellate court ruled that the subpoenas for the Trumps' testimonies were not, as the defendants argued, part of a politically-motivated investigation. The New York Court of Appeals gave the Trumps until Monday to submit an appeal but shot it down a day later, as per ABC News.
New York Attorney General Letitia James has argued that her office has found "significant evidence" of fraud in the investigation into how Trump and his business valued real estate holdings in the state. The investigation also reviewed whether or not the Trump Organization used fraudulent or misleading valuations of its holdings in different ways to obtain a variety of economic benefits.
Among the real estate holdings that are part of the investigation are 40 Wall Street in Manhattan's Financial District; Seven Springs, Trump's estate in Westchester; Trump Park Avenue; and even Trump's triplex apartment in the Trump Tower.
According to CBS News, the New York court also dismissed a motion filed by Trump's lawyers to stay the subpoenas, saying that doing so would be "academic," since it was not taking up the former president's appeal in the first place. The situation comes after last week when Trump and his two eldest children agreed to answer questions under oath.
Potential Legal Consequences
A lawyer for James' office told a judge last month that evidence could support legal action against the former president, his company, or both, though the attorney said that no decision had been made so far. The Republican businessman has decried the investigation saying it was part of a politically-motivated "witch hunt" against him.
The deposition and investigation into Trump's real estate come as he also faces potential legal consequences from the House Select Committee's Jan. 6 hearing. On Monday, the former president issued a 12-page rebuttal to testimony and evidence presented by the panel investigating the events of the Capitol Hill insurrection.
In a statement released through Trump's Save America PAC, the former president said that 17 months after the events of the Jan. 6 riot, Democrats are unable to offer solutions. He argued that they were desperate to change the narrative of a failing nation without making mention of the havoc and death caused by the Radical Left just months before the incident, The Hill reported.
