Judge Engoron Grants Subpoena for Real Estate Attorney Over Trump Case Comments “Extraordinary Claims to the Media”
(AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Judge Arthur Engoron, who presided over Donald Trump’s criminal fraud trial, has granted a subpoena for real estate attorney Adam Leitman Bailey due to comments Bailey made about the case. This development adds another layer of complexity to the ongoing legal battles surrounding the former president.
The New York Supreme Court Justice discussed the Trump case in a hallway conversation three weeks before ruling against the Trump Organization. Law&Crime reported that Engoron granted the subpoena for Bailey, who spoke to local station WNBC on February 16, the day the judgment was issued.
The conversation with Bailey surfaced in May, prompting the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct to investigate Engoron for the hallway chat. Trump’s lawyers quickly demanded an ethics investigation into what was discussed and sought Engoron’s recusal from the case, which was denied. Trump has since appealed the decision.
Trump’s legal team then moved to subpoena Bailey to question him about the discussion and demanded “any pattern of communication” between Bailey and Engoron. Bailey’s lawyers criticized the subpoena as a “fishing expedition,” aiming to explore irrelevant matters.
Bailey’s attorney attempted to quash the subpoena, but Engoron allowed it in part. “As Mr. Bailey and his firm have appeared before this Court often, the request is unduly burdensome, as it would subject to disclosure all communications on wholly unrelated matters,” Engoron wrote in his order. “Accordingly, this Court will not so-order the subpoena as issued, as it is framed in the most general terms and unquestionably would permit an improper wholesale fishing expedition.”
Engoron described the broad scope of the request, noting that Trump’s lawyers asked for all communication “from the beginning of time until now,” which he deemed overly broad.
However, Engoron acknowledged that the subpoena had some merit. “Mr. Bailey has opened the door by making his extraordinary claims to the media, in which he, by his own admission, stated that he attempted to offer unsolicited legal advice to this Court. Accordingly, defendants are entitled to any communications or documents in Mr. Bailey’s possession that involve, discuss, or in any way refer to ‘the Action’ as defined in the subpoena.”
Trump’s team is now demanding that Engoron recuse himself from matters related to Bailey. This ongoing legal maneuvering highlights the intense scrutiny and contentious nature of the case as it continues to unfold.
