Judge declines to dismiss New York AG’s lawsuit against Trump

A New York judge on Friday declined to throw out state Attorney General Letitia James' civil lawsuit against former President Trump, per the New York Times.

The big picture: It's the attorney general's latest victory against Trump and makes it more likely the former president will have to face trial later this year.

Driving the news: Justice Arthur F. Engoron of the State Supreme Court in Manhattan denied Trump’s motion to dismiss the case, saying some of the arguments repeatedly made by the former president's lawyers were "frivolous" and had been "borderline frivolous even the first time defendants made them."

• The judge also rejected a separate attempt by Ivanka Trump — a defendant in the lawsuit — to dismiss the accusations against her.

State of play: In November, the same judge sided with James in her bid for an independent monitor to oversee the Trump Organization's preparation of financial statements amid pending review of the civil lawsuit.

• Engoron set a trial date of Oct. 2, 2023, over the objections of the Trumps’ lawyers.
• At that time, the defense attorneys filed several motions to dismiss, and Engoron rejected all of them.

Catch up quick: James filed a civil lawsuit in September, accusing Trump and members of his family of financial fraud and referring them to federal prosecutors and the IRS for criminal investigation.

• The suit alleges the former president "falsely inflated his net worth by billions of dollars."
• The AG is seeking to permanently bar Trump, Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump and Eric Trump — all named in the suit — from serving as an officer or director of a business registered in New York state.

• James is also seeking a $250 million judgment.

Meanwhile, Trump has filed his own lawsuits against James, alleging that she's abused her position and embarked on a "war of intimidation and harassment" against him.

What they're saying: "Once again, Donald Trump’s attempts to evade the law have been rejected," James said in a statement.

• The decision "makes clear that Donald Trump is not above the law and must answer for his actions in court," she added.
• Trump has perviously denied the allegations, calling it a "witch hunt."
• Representatives for the Trump Organization did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment.