Florida Judge Will Not Be Granting Trump’s Request To Tell New York Attorney General How To Do Her Job

trump sad

(Photo by PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images)

Safe to say US District Judge Donald Middlebrooks is tired of Donald Trump’s bullshit. The South Florida jurist just got through the first round of sanctioning Trump’s lawyers in that garbage fire RICO suit against Hillary Clinton and James Comey. And now New York Attorney General Letitia James removed that insane complaint Trump filed against her in Palm Beach County Circuit Court to federal court, landing on his docket.

googletag.cmd.push( function() { // Display ad. googletag.display( "div-id-for-top-300x250" ); });

Surely Trump’s new lawyers from the St. Petersburg law firm Weber Crab Wein will be on their best behavior, lest they find themselves on the pointy end of a Rule 11 motion. Right?

Looking For A Turnkey Solution To Move Your Law Firm To The Cloud? Sponsored Looking For A Turnkey Solution To Move Your Law Firm To The Cloud? You can have fast, secure access to your files and applications from anywhere without having to learn anything new or purchase upgraded hardware. Here’s how. From Above the Law

The AG already filed a motion to dismiss this dumb turkey, which purports to seek relief against her in her personal capacity to prevent her seeking judicial enforcement of an order to turn over the paperwork for his revocable trust. How private citizen James would go about accessing this document is unclear, and indeed all the exhibits entered into the record show communications with attorneys in the AG’s office. But that is a WTF for another day, because in the meantime, Trump moved for a temporary injunction to stop James accessing the disputed trust records.

Unsurprisingly, the court was not terribly receptive to Trump’s demand for so-called emergency relief.

googletag.cmd.push( function() { // Display ad. googletag.display( "div-id-for-middle-300x250" ); }); googletag.cmd.push( function() { // Display ad. googletag.display( "div-id-for-storycontent-440x100" ); }); googletag.cmd.push( function() { // Display ad. googletag.display( "div-id-for-in-story-youtube-1x1" ); });

Defendant raises four reasons—all of which are likely correct—why Plaintiff has no substantial likelihood of success on the merits. First, it is not at all clear that a federal court sitting in West Palm Beach, Florida, has personal jurisdiction over the Attorney General of New York. Second, this action is barred by New York’s interstate sovereign immunity. Third, this action is barred by issue and claim preclusion. And fourth, this action is barred under the Rooker-Feldman doctrine. I will briefly address Plaintiff’s responses in turn.

The court went on to note that “it is not at all obvious, and Plaintiff cites no case law for support, that the Florida Trust Code was intended to reach government officials lawfully bringing enforcement actions for alleged fraud.”

Sponsored The View from Inside: How In-House Leaders Can Improve Department Dissatisfaction and Mitigate Attrition Sponsored The View from Inside: How In-House Leaders Can Improve Department Dissatisfaction and Mitigate Attrition Here’s the bottom line: if you are a GC or in-house legal leader, more than half of your legal team should be considered a flight… From Axiom and Above The Law Thomson Reuters’ Practical Law — The Journal: Transactions & Business Sponsored Thomson Reuters’ Practical Law — The Journal: Transactions & Business Explore decentralized finance, ESG-driven divestments, supply chain disruptions, and much more with the help of Practical Law’s over 300 attorney editors.   From Above the Law and Thomson Reuters Looking For A Turnkey Solution To Move Your Law Firm To The Cloud? Sponsored Looking For A Turnkey Solution To Move Your Law Firm To The Cloud? You can have fast, secure access to your files and applications from anywhere without having to learn anything new or purchase upgraded hardware. Here’s how. From Above the Law The View from Inside: How In-House Leaders Can Improve Department Dissatisfaction and Mitigate Attrition Sponsored The View from Inside: How In-House Leaders Can Improve Department Dissatisfaction and Mitigate Attrition Here’s the bottom line: if you are a GC or in-house legal leader, more than half of your legal team should be considered a flight… From Axiom and Above The Law

Judge Middlebrooks further characterized the argument that James is being sued in her personal, rather than official, capacity as “plainly frivolous,” remarking that the complaint includes the same ranting “almost verbatim” about bias and improper prosecution that Trump included in his fruitless filings before New York Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron, as well as his dumb, doomed attempt to get a New York federal court to intervene and make the AG stop investigating him. 

Calling the claim of irreparable harm from having his estate plan disclosed “quintessentially speculative,” the court points out that Trump’s attorney Alina Habba, of the aforementioned sanctions motion, has proposed handing over a redacted version of the trust documents without the estate planning provisions, and the AG has apparently accepted the compromise.

Finally, the court observes that “The Trump Organization has already been found guilty by a New-York jury of several counts of tax fraud…. To now impede a civil Enforcement Action by the New York Attorney General would be unprecedented and contrary to the interests of the people of New York.”

googletag.cmd.push( function() { // Display ad. googletag.display( "div-id-for-bottom-300x250" ); });

TL;DR? The best time to rethink this lawsuit was November 2 before vomiting it onto the docket in Palm Beach County. The second best time is now.

Trump v. James [Docket via Court Listener]

Sponsored MyCase And LawPay — Better Together Sponsored MyCase And LawPay — Better Together Why small and midsize firms win big in a blockbuster merger. From Above the Law From Equity Management to Liquidity: How Morgan Stanley at Work Is Supporting Top Law Firms Sponsored From Equity Management to Liquidity: How Morgan Stanley at Work Is Supporting Top Law Firms Read on to learn how empowering your clients with equity solutions can set them and their employees up for success. From Stephanie Wilkins

Liz Dye lives in Baltimore where she writes about law and politics.

Topics

Alina Habba, Donald Middlebrooks, Donald Trump, Government, Letitia James, Weber Crab Wein


Introducing Jobbguru: Your Gateway to Career Success

The ultimate job platform is designed to connect job seekers with their dream career opportunities. Whether you're a recent graduate, a seasoned professional, or someone seeking a career change, Jobbguru provides you with the tools and resources to navigate the job market with ease. 

Take the next step in your career with Jobbguru:

Don't let the perfect job opportunity pass you by. Join Jobbguru today and unlock a world of career possibilities. Start your journey towards professional success and discover your dream job with Jobbguru.

Originally posted on: https://abovethelaw.com/2022/12/florida-judge-will-not-be-granting-trumps-request-to-tell-new-york-attorney-general-how-to-do-her-job/