U.S. President Donald Trump stands next to Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev (not pictured) at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 8, 2025.
Jessica Koscielniak | Reuters
A New York state appeals court on Thursday threw out a more than $500 million civil fraud penalty imposed on President Donald Trump.
The appeals court said that while “injunctive relief” ordered by the trial judge in the case was “well crafted to curb defendants’ business culture” at the Trump Organization, the monetary penalty, “which directs that defendants pay nearly half a billion dollars to the State of New York, is an excessive fine that violates the Eighth Amendment of the United States Constitution.”
The lawsuit against Trump and his company, along with other defendants, was filed by New York State Attorney General Letitia James.
CNBC has requested comment James, the White House and the Trump Organization on the decision.
– Additional reporting by CNBC’s Kevin Breuninger
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