Earlier this month, Ivanka Trump was called to testify in the fraud case against her father, Donald Trump. On Nov. 8th, Ivanka was questioned for five hours about her involvement in The Trump Organization in regards to acquiring loans, and to her dismay, her emails with her husband Jared Kusher were able to be used in court. Her fatal mistake? Ivanka sent these emails using a company server, which makes them fair game.
Donald Trump and his company as well high level executives, including his two adult sons, Don Jr. and Eric, are being sued by New York State General Attorney Letitia James for fraudulently inflating the former president’s net worth in order to secure loans with better terms. Judge Engoron has already found the former president guilty of fraud, and is now determining what the punishment should be. Keep reading for more information.
Ivanka Trump's emails used in court against Donald Trump
Ivanka Trump doesn't work for The Trump Organization anymore—she left in 2017—but when she working there, she was involved in the purchase of the Old Post Office building in Washington, D.C., which is now the Trump International Hotel. James is claiming that the loan used to purchase the building was obtained by Ivanka using inflated statements of the former president's net worth.
In the process of securing this loan, Ivanka emailed with her husband, Jared Kushner, and while Trump's lawyers attempted to claim spousal privilege—the law that protects private communication between spouses from being used in court—because Ivanka sent these emails using the Trump Organization server, the emails aren't protected.
These emails added further evidence to James' case against Mr. Trump. In the emails, Ivanka asks Kushner for advice about securing a loan from Capital One bank. Kushner replied that he could personally discuss the deal with investment bank Natixis because he thought they'd give the Trump Organization better terms.
When questioned about the emails, Ivanka said, "I don't remember this exchange, but it is not uncommon that I would ask my husband's perspective on something I was working on."
Judge finds Donald Trump, Eric Trump, and Donald Trump Jr. guilty of fraud
Last month, Judge Engoron determined that Donald Trump and his two adults sons did indeed commit fraud in their property evaluations. The judge is still in the process of determining the punishment for this crime. James is asking for $250M in fines and for the Trump Organization to be banned from doing business in the state of NY.
The court is still deciding on six other accusations, including falsifying business records, insurance fraud, and conspiracy claims. In addition to this case, Donald Trump is involved in a number of other lawsuits, and has been since he left the presidency in 2020. Whether or not this lawsuit or any of the others will affect his candidacy for presidency is unknown at this time.
