Donald Trump’s attorneys have begun to present their defence argument in his civil fraud trial at New York State’s Supreme Court in Lower Manhattan.
The former president’s eldest son Donald Trump Jr was the first witness, launching into a lengthy sales pitch praising his father’s “artistry” and his real estate “canvas”.
Asked about what the future holds for the company he said it depends on whether or not they are “sued into oblivion”.
During his testimony two weeks ago, under questioning from lawyers with the office of New York Attorney General Letitia James, Don Jr emphatically denied having anything to do with making his father’s statements of financial condition at the heart of a lawsuit.
His brother Eric Trump and sister Ivanka Trump also denied any involvement in those documents, though evidence appeared to show they were well aware of them.
In other legal, Special Counsel Jack Smith has warned that the former president wants to turn his federal January 6 trial into a media “carnival” for wanting proceedings to be televised. Mr Smith is urging federal judge Tanya Chutkan to reject his request.
Meanwhile, Maryanne Trump Barry, Donald Trump’s sister and a former federal judge, has passed away aged 86.