Court Denies Ivanka Trump's Request to Postpone Testimony Citing Undue Hardship During School Week

Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump on November 2.

Shannon Stapleton/Pool/Reuters

Takeaways from the tense testimony of Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. in the New York fraud case

Ivanka Trump's request to delay her upcoming testimony in her father's civil fraud trial was rejected by a higher court on Thursday. This decision came shortly after Ivanka Trump claimed that she would face "undue hardship" if she had to testify during a school week. Her attorney argued in her appeal that Ms. Trump, who currently resides in Florida with her three minor children, would experience significant hardship if she was required to testify in New York before her appeal was heard, especially considering that she had already been dismissed from the case.

Trump filed an appeal to prevent New York Judge Arthur Engorons' earlier order for a testimony from proceeding until the appellate court in New York could hear the appeal. Additionally, the appeal requested a halt to the entire fraud trial against former President Donald Trump, his two adult sons, and his company until her appeal was heard. Unfortunately, the motion for a stay was promptly rejected in a filing on Thursday night.

Ivanka Trump's two adult brothers, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, who played significant roles in the Trump Organization during their father's presidency, appeared in court consecutively earlier today. Former President Donald Trump is expected to testify on Monday.

Last week, Judge Engoron ordered Ivanka Trump to testify on Wednesday, rejecting her attorney's request to dismiss the subpoena. At the conclusion of Thursday's proceedings, Ivanka Trump's attorney appealed to the court to halt the requirement for her testimony and to postpone the trial.

Her lawyer contends that the New York civil court lacks the authority to compel her to testify since she has not resided or worked in New York since 2017 and is no longer a co-defendant in the case.

In June, a New York appeals court removed Ivanka Trump as a co-defendant, stating that the accusations against her were too outdated as she was not involved in an agreement made in August 2021 between New York Attorney General Letitia James' office and the Trump Organization to extend the time limit for filing charges.

This story has been updated with additional developments.