But the appeals court on Thursday appeared unmoved, and did not address those arguments in its order. It is unclear whether the ruling by a panel of five judges completely shut down Mr. Trump’s lawsuit against Justice Engoron. Although the ruling lifted a stay of the trial, it did not technically dismiss the former president’s claims against the judge.
John W. Moscow, a former Manhattan prosecutor who has worked on fraud investigations for decades, said that the appeals court’s denial of a delay just days before the trial is set to begin was simply common sense.
“That they denied it without comment that doesn’t strike me as in any way surprising,” he said. “That’s what you would expect an appellate court to do.”
A lawyer for Mr. Trump, Christopher M. Kise, did not respond to several requests for comment. On Tuesday, he called Justice Engoron’s ruling “outrageous” and “completely disconnected from the facts and governing law.” He said that the judge ignored “basic legal, accounting and business principles.”
Mr. Trump has denied all wrongdoing. A Republican, the former president has accused the judge and the attorney general, both Democrats, of being politically motivated, and has called Justice Engoron “deranged” and Ms. James, who is Black, a racist.
