Topline
Former President Donald Trump is fighting a litany of criminal and civil cases in multiple states, leaving him with a busy court schedule in the coming months—and while he awaits sentencing in one case, several others aren’t expected to go to trial until after the election, with the federal Jan. 6 case facing yet another delay Friday.
Former President Donald Trump sits in the courtroom during his hush money trial at Manhattan … [+]
Timeline
As Trump awaits sentencing for his hush money conviction, the only criminal case against Trump that’s gone to trial so far, New York Judge Juan Merchan will issue a decision on Trump’s request for him to recuse himself.
After Trump’s federal criminal case for allegedly withholding White House documents was dismissed, Special Counsel Jack Smith will ask an appeals court to revive it, submitting a brief on why the appeals court should overturn U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon’s dismissal.
Smith and Trump’s lawyers will suggest to federal Judge Tanya Chutkan how they think Trump’s federal case for trying to overturn the 2020 election should play out from here, a deadline that Chutkan extended Friday—with a Supreme Court decision giving Trump some immunity for “official” acts dangling over the fate of the trial.
Chutkan will make the final determination on how the federal election case should move forward, holding a status conference with prosecutors and Trump’s lawyers.
Trump’s lawyers will try to overturn a civil court verdict finding Trump liable for defaming and sexually abusing writer E. Jean Carroll, as an appeals court hears arguments on Trump’s appeal of the verdict in Carroll’s first trial, in which the ex-president was ordered to pay $5 million.
Merchan will decide whether to grant Trump’s request to throw out the verdict against him in the hush money case, because the ex-president argues the Supreme Court’s ruling granting Trump criminal immunity for “official acts” he took in office invalidates some of the evidence prosecutors used at trial.
Lawyers for Trump will face off against several Capital Police officers seeking to hold him liable for the January 6 riot in a federal court hearing, as the case moves toward a trial after Judge Amit Mehta ruled Trump doesn’t have any civil immunity.
Trump will be sentenced for the 34 felony counts he was found guilty of at the New York criminal hush money trial—assuming Merchan doesn’t throw out the verdict against the ex-president a few days before.
Trump’s appeal of the $450 million civil fraud judgment against him and his business associates will be heard in court, as a New York state appeals court said in June the appeal would be calendared for the end of its September term.
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What To Watch For
If Trump wins in November, these next few months will likely be the end for at least some of his criminal proceedings. Trump is likely to have the federal charges against him dismissed in the election case and the documents case, if the appeals court revives it, which he could do by appointing DOJ officials willing to drop the charges. He would not have any power over state prosecutions against him, though they could be paused until Trump leaves office.
What We Don’t Know
What else will come up between now and November. It won’t be clear until the September 6 hearing how Trump’s federal election case will keep playing out, but Chutkan is likely to add more filing deadlines and hearings at that point in order to keep the case moving forward after it had previously been paused for months. The judge will have to determine how the Supreme Court’s ruling giving Trump some immunity will affect the charges against him before the case can go to trial, however—which is expected to be a lengthy process that ensures the trial wouldn’t start before Election Day. It also remains to be seen how the appeals court could schedule developments in Trump’s documents case after the initial briefs are filed.
Tangent
Trump’s criminal case in Georgia for trying to overturn the 2020 election isn’t expected to have any activity between now and November, as the case remains on hold while an appeals court considers whether Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis should be disqualified over her romantic relationship with former prosecutor Nathan Wade. The appeals court won’t hold arguments in that dispute until December, after the election, ensuring the case will stay paused until then and any trial wouldn’t happen until next year at the earliest.
How Does The Election Fit Into Trump’s Legal Calendar?
While Election Day isn’t until November 5, Trump’s busy September court calendar will come just before the start of voting season. Ten states mail out ballots more than 45 days before Election Day, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, which this year will be September 21. That means some voters could see how Trump’s sentencing plays out on September 18—and then fill out their ballot just a few days later.
Key Background
Trump has faced a slew of legal issues in recent years after his presidency, including four criminal cases and numerous civil lawsuits. The ex-president has broadly opposed the cases against him, pleading not guilty in his criminal cases and generally denouncing allegations as “witch hunts” designed to hurt his political campaign. While the criminal charges against Trump were all brought last year, only the ex-president’s Manhattan hush money case has gone to trial so far, as Trump and his attorneys have succeeded in delaying criminal proceedings in other cases. Trump’s federal election case started moving forward again last week after the Supreme Court ruled in July that Trump and ex-president’s can’t be criminally charged for “official acts” in office, disagreeing with district and appeals court judges who said he’s not entitled to immunity. That ruling has further upended the cases against Trump and resulted in his sentencing in the hush money case getting delayed, in addition to its impact on the election case.
