AP admits NY AG’s civil case against Trump is unprecedented in 70 years of case history

The AP released the report on Monday, with a headline that reads, "Taking away Trump's business empire would stand alone under New York fraud law."

An analysis of fraud cases was conducted by the outlet surrounding the law and penalty Trump is facing over a 70-year history. Only 12 other cases have resulted in the same penalty that would kill the former president's business ventures in the city. Trump's case stands alone in that nobody was a victim or faced losses as a result of the claimed fraud.

In the 150 reported cases the AP reviewed since the passing of New York's "repeated fraud" statutes, nearly every time there were victims and losses involved in the process.

In addition, the harsh penalty of complete liquidation of the business was used as a last resort to protect victims instead of as a primary punishment tool.

Adam Leitman Bailey, a New York real estate lawyer who has also successfully sued a Trump property said using the punishment in the case "sets a horrible precedent."

University of Michigan law professor William Thomas also added, “Who suffered here? We haven’t seen a long list of victims.”

New York Attorney General Letitia James has ordered that Trump be forbidden from doing business in New York altogether and has set a penalty to be paid by the former president at $370 million.

In September 2023, State Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron said that Trump had committed fraud, his business certificates should be revoked, and that someone should manage the "dissolution" of them. By Jan. 31 he is expected to be issuing a ruling in the case.