Attorney General Bonta Joins 17-State Amicus Brief Supporting a State's Right to Seek Accountability for Fraud Among Private Businesses
California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced on October 30 that, as part of a coalition of 17 attorneys general, he has filed an amicus brief in People of the State of New York v. Trump, emphasizing the important role state attorneys general play in policing economic fraud even when that fraud takes place in private commercial transactions between sophisticated parties.
New York law authorizes the New York Attorney General to seek judicial remedies for repeated or persistent business fraud or illegality. In the brief, the coalition urges the New York Court of Appeals to uphold a lower court's ruling that the New York Attorney General had authority under this law to bring an action against Donald Trump and other defendants for fraud against sophisticated business entities that declined to pursue the legal remedies available to them.
"Fraud is fraud, and it should be treated as such," Bonta said. "There is no loophole that allows for corrupt business practices, and there is no technicality that prevents the state from upholding antifraud laws."
In 2022, the New York Attorney General sued Trump and other defendants for engaging in financial fraud by inflating Trump's statements of financial condition in submissions to lenders and others for the purpose of obtaining favorable business deals. The trial court held Trump and other defendants liable for fraud; the liability finding was upheld on appeal, and the matter is now before New York's highest court.
The coalition asserts that states have a sovereign interest in eradicating all kinds of fraud from their economies and retain extensive police powers to protect against fraud, and that state enforcement in these contexts serves the public interest. Joining Bonta are the attorneys general of Oregon, Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：加州总检察长办公室所在大楼（素材库 california 固定图）。GSM 素材库。 / The California Attorney General's office building. GSM asset library (california pack).
