Court rejects Donald Trump’s bid to delay trial in wake of fraud ruling that threatens his business

An appeals court has rejected Donald Trump’s bid to delay a civil trial in a lawsuit brought by New York’s attorney general. Thursday’s decision by the state’s intermediate appellate court allows the case to proceed days after a judge ruled the former president committed years of fraud and stripped him of some companies as punishment. The decision clears the way for Judge Arthur Engoron to preside over a non-jury trial starting Oct. 2 in Manhattan in New York Attorney General Letitia James’ civil lawsuit. Trump is listed among dozens of possible witnesses, setting up a potential courtroom showdown with the judge whose fraud ruling threatens to upend his real estate empire.