President Trump. Photo: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI / Contributor/Getty Images
The Supreme Court agreed on Friday to take on three cases involving President Trump's finances to determine whether he can block the release of his records.
Why it matters: The court's ruling could give the American public a look at the president's finances after he has gone to great lengths to keep them under wraps.
The big picture: The court's decision could undermine Trump's argument that he is immune from criminal investigations while in office — an argument his lawyers have used in response to requests for his tax returns and financial records, per the New York Times.
How we got here: In one of the cases being examined, Trump asked the Supreme Court in November to keep his longtime accounting firm, Mazars USA, from turning over his tax returns to the Manhattan district attorney.
- In another case, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in early December that Deutsche Bank and Capital One must comply with a congressional subpoena for Trump, his children and his company's financial records.
- Trump has filed at least three lawsuits to block the release of his tax returns. The president, his family and his company also filed a lawsuit against Deutsche Bank to block the financial institution from complying with congressional subpoenas.
Read the Supreme Court order:
Go deeper: Trump intends to take tax return fight to Supreme Court