A New York judge has imposed a limited gag order on defendant Donald Trump

on

Tuesday after the former president discredited a key court official during his civil corporate fraud trial.

Judge Arthur Engoron issued the order, which applies to all parties in the case and only covers verbal attacks on court personnel. It came after Trump recirculated a disparaging social media post about Engoron’s chief law clerk, Allison Greenfield.

Without mentioning Trump by name, Engoron said a defendant in the case “made a disparaging, untrue and personally identifying post about a member of my staff on a social media account. He added that personal attacks on members of my court staff are unacceptable and inappropriate. and not tolerated

.

Trump had already deleted the post and Engoron said he ordered it removed.

The post included a photo of Greenfield with Senate Majority Leader Ch

Arles E.

Schumer

(

DNY

)

at a campaign event. Trump, the Republican front-runner for president in 2024, has repeatedly portrayed the lawsuit as a political attack by New York’s Democratic attorney general, Letitia James.

Trump also commented on the clerk on Monday, saying she should not be in his ear for every question

That she

hates Trump.

The gag order came after Trump and lawyers from both parties repeatedly went to court behind closed doors during the lunch break.

As Trump attended the trial for a second day, James’ attorney questioned an accountant in an effort to build the U.S. case that Trump and others at his company had complete control over the preparation of misleading and outright false financial statements that were central to the lawsuit against them.

And Engoron set the record straight with a comment that the ex-president had touted as a major victory.

Engoron had suggested Monday that testimony about Trump’s 2011 financial statement might exceed the legal deadline applicable to Att.

orne

j

.

gene

. eral

James lawsuit. It is alleged that Trump and his company chronically lied about his wealth on financial statements provided to banks, insurers and others.

The relevant limitation period excludes claims relating to activities before a date in 2014, and

T

Trump’s legal team has argued that the time limit cuts off most cases.

Engoron said Tuesday that statutes of limitations bar claims, not evidence, and that he was in the early stages of the trial

is what

inclined to give both sides

significantly significantly

Space to link older evidence to claims in the lawsuit.

I want to emphasize: this process is not an opportunity to start over

–

to litigate what I have already decided, said Engoron. He ruled last week that all claims were admissible under the statute of limitations.

A lawyer from James’ office, Kevin Wallace, further suggested that he used the 2011 document to show that Trump’s financial statements were prepared in the same manner, giving him and his company the final say on the valuations made during appeared for at least a decade. .

Donald Bender, an accountant who prepared the annual accounts for years, tested whether Trump’s company provided the figures contained in the documents. Each spreadsheet had PBC, prepared by the customer, written in large red letters, Bender said.

Bender testified that in some years the Trump Organization has not provided all the documents needed to prepare the statements, despite doing so in letters to the account.

ing

that she had provided all financial information.

They did not provide all the documents we needed, Bender testified, explaining that certain appraisals had existed for several years that we had never seen.

Trump, who denies all wrongdoing, said during a break in court that he thought the trial went very well. He reiterated key points in his defense, including that the financial statements contained disclaimers saying they had not been audited and that others might come to different conclusions about his financial position if they had more information.

This case is a scam. There can be no fraud if you tell institutions to do their own work, Trump said on Tuesday.

After Monday’s sometimes fiery opening statements, Tuesday’s testimony was so difficult that Bender took two deep breaths on the stand.

Trump plans to testify later in the trial, but he is not required to attend the trial now. While he grumbles that he would rather be on the campaign trail, the Republican former president and 2024 GOP frontrunner has used the waiting cameras in the courthouse hallway as a microphone for political messages. He claims James, a Democrat, is using the legal system as a political cudgel to thwart his ongoing campaign.

James scored an early victory when Engoron, a Democrat, ruled last week that Trump had committed fraud by exaggerating the size of his Trump Tower penthouse, claiming that his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida had as much as 739 million dollar was worth, and similar oversized valuations of office towers, golf courses and other assets.

The non-jury trial concerns six remaining claims in the lawsuit and how much Trump may owe in fines. James demands $250 million and a ban on Trump doing business in New York. The judge has already ruled that some of Trump’s companies must be dissolved as punishment.

Trump’s lawyers said the financial statements were a legitimate representation of the value of unique luxury properties, made even more valuable because of their association with Trump.

The trial is expected to last until December.