Name: Judge Refuses to Stay Pyramid Scheme Lawsuit Against Trump Family | Law & Crime
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Judge Refuses to Stay Pyramid Scheme Lawsuit Against Trump Family | Law & Crime

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Sharecopy linkA federal judge sitting in the Southern District of New York has refused to stay a lawsuit alleging that Donald Trump, Donald Trump, Jr., Eric Trump, Ivanka Trump, and the Trump Corporation committed “various business torts,” including engaging in an illegal pyramid scheme.The complicated and anonymous class action lawsuit, filed by a Jane Doe and others, resulted in motions to stay the proceedings and interlocutory appeals by the Trumps, the Trump Corporation, and a third party called ACN Opportunity, LLC. ACN was ordered to produce documents relevant to the claims. Interlocutory appeals are appeals to higher courts filed in the midst, rather than at the conclusion, of lower court litigation.The judge, Lorna G. Schofield, a Barack Obama appointee, said the lawsuit would not be put on hold.The lawsuit, originally as an anti-“racketeering enterprise” action, was later streamlined.&nbsp;The class&nbsp;sued on various state and federal charges–including “racketeering and conspiracy to racketeer” claims. The two federal claims were after the Trump family . But the case is yet living.The class action plaintiffs allege that the Trump family business&nbsp;promoted a multi-level marketing, or pyramid, scheme known as ACN Opportunity, LLC. ACN, the plaintiffs said, was a “get-rich-quick scheme” that relied on Trump and his family “conn[ing] each of these victims into giving up hundreds or thousands of dollars,” in violation of various state laws:Count 3 asserts the dissemination of untrue and misleading public statements under California law. Count 4 asserts unfair competition under California law. Count 5 asserts unfair and deceptive trade practices under Maryland law. Count 6 asserts unfair and deceptive practices under Pennsylvania law. Counts 7 and 8 assert common law fraud and negligent misrepresentation.The plaintiffs claimed that the Trump family falsely endorsed and promoted ACN by insisting that the enterprise “offered a reasonable probability of commercial success”—even using The Celebrity Apprentice to draw them in:Between 2005 and at least 2015, Defendants promoted and endorsed ACN through videos, print and online media, at ACN events, and during episodes of The Celebrity Apprentice, a television program hosted by Trump and featuring Ivanka Trump and Donald Trump, Jr. Defendants’ endorsement of ACN was crucial to Plaintiffs’ decisions to become [Independent Business Owners (IBOS)] for at least two related reasons. First, Plaintiffs considered Trump and his family highly successful in business. Second, Plaintiffs believed that the endorsement was independent of ACN.According to the lawsuit, ACN was paying the Trumps for the above-described exposure but this was not public knowledge.Schofield walked the case through the “traditional standard” for determining whether to stay litigation. The first factor is whether the parties applying for the stay — the Trumps and ACN — are likely to succeed on the merits.&nbsp; Here, Schofield ruled that they are not, and for several reasons.The first reason the Trumps and ACN are not likely to succeed — here, in an interlocutory appeal — is because they attempted to force the case into arbitration “despite the absence&nbsp;Per the judge:In other words, the Trumps, their business, and ACN botched the case, and the likelihood that they will succeed in an interlocutory appeal is low.The second of the four factors for a stay, irreparable injury, did not outweigh the defendants’ loss on the first factor, the judge ruled.&nbsp; The third factor, “substantial injury” to the plaintiffs, factored “slightly against a stay;” the fourth factor, “public interest” weighed “slightly in favor of a stay,” the judge ruled.Here’s what the judge said about the “public interest” determination: “And here’s how the judge summed up the relevant balancing act:, Judge Schofield denied a Trump family bid to force this matter into private arbitration. And speaking of the Apprentice, there’s been much ado about the prospect of never-seen recordings (though these tapes may not include the ).by on Scribd[Image via MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images.]Have a tip we should know?Please enable JavaScript to view the

Sharecopy linkA federal judge sitting in the Southern District of New York has refused to stay a lawsuit alleging that Donald Trump, Donald Trump, Jr., Eric Trump, Ivanka Trump, and the Trump Corporation committed “various business torts,” including engaging in an illegal pyramid scheme.The complicated and anonymous class action lawsuit, filed by a Jane Doe and others, resulted in motions to stay the proceedings and interlocutory appeals by the Trumps, the Trump Corporation, and a third party called ACN Opportunity, LLC. ACN was ordered to produce documents relevant to the claims....

Judge Refuses to Stay Pyramid Scheme Lawsuit Against Trump Family | Law & Crime

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