A judge in New York has ruled that Trump committed fraud by falsely inflating his net worth by as much as $2.2 billion.

A judge in New York ruled on Tuesday that Donald Trump and his company committed fraud by exaggerating his net worth to mislead banks and insurers. This decision addresses a major allegation in a civil fraud case brought by the New York state attorney general, shortly before the start of a scheduled trial.

The judge, Arthur Engoron, stated in a court document that the Attorney General’s office, led by Tish James, has provided solid proof that the ex-president and his co-defendants inflated the value of their assets by a range of $812 million to $2.2 billion from 2014 to 2021. The judge also expressed that even in the realm of finance, it is not acceptable to consider a misrepresentation of at least $812 million as insignificant.

As a part of the court’s decision, the judge revoked the business licenses of all parties involved, including the Trump Organization, various LLCs associated with the company, and any entity under the control or ownership of Trump, his adult sons, former CFO Allen Weisselberg, and company executive Jeffrey McConney.

Within 10 days of the ruling, Engoron mandated that Trump and the other defendants must submit a list of potential independent receivers who will oversee the dissolution of the canceled LLCs.

The decision, made before the scheduled trial on October 2nd, is a major loss for Trump. He has often highlighted his personal and professional accomplishments to boost his business ventures and political campaigns, but has now been exposed for promoting false claims of financial success.

The legal case alleges that Trump and the other individuals involved made over 200 false assessments of the company’s financial status and engaged in other deceiving practices. The lawsuit is seeking $250 million in compensation and a permanent restriction on the Trumps from holding positions as executives or board members in any New York-based businesses.

James stated that a judge has ruled in their favor, finding that Donald Trump and the Trump Organization committed financial fraud over a period of years. They are looking forward to presenting further evidence in court.

According to Trump’s lawyer, Chris Kise, the decision is not based on the actual facts and laws in place, and they plan to challenge it.

Engoron’s decision did not completely resolve all of the allegations made in James’ lawsuit. The judge stated that there are disagreements about the facts surrounding these claims, which will need to be addressed in a trial. The judge also approved the attorney general’s motion to penalize Trump’s attorneys, ordering each of them to pay a fine of $7,500.