Former President Donald Trump must undergo questioning under oath before Christmas in a defamation suit filed by an ex-contestant ...
Former President Donald Trump must undergo questioning under oath before Christmas in a defamation suit filed by an ex-contestant on The Apprentice after he denied her sexual assault accusations during his 2016 campaign.
Justice Jennifer Schecter of the New York state court in Manhattan said on Monday that Trump must submit to a deposition by December 23 - lawyers for Trump and Zervos accused their opponents of stalling at the conference.
Summer Zervos said Trump subjected her to unwanted kissing and touching when she sought career advice in 2007 during the former president's 2016 campaign and alleges he defamed her when he said she lied about it.
Although Trump and Zervos' attorneys are still haggling over the disclosure of certain documents, law clerk Michael Rand said on Monday that there isn't a 'reason that before the end of the year, [they aren't] done with depositions.'
Former President Donald Trump must undergo questioning under oath before Christmas in a defamation suit filed by an ex-contestant on The Apprentice after he denied her sexual assault accusations during his 2016 campaign,
'Now he’s a private citizen, I’m sure like any other litigant, we can have mutually agreeable dates for depositions,' he said, according to ABC News.
Trump's attorney Alina Habba said it was 'completely ridiculous' to think depositions could occur before Zervos handed over the requested documents.
'Ms. Zervos is claiming emotional damages and financial damages,' she said, according to ABC. 'How can we, as defense counsel, provide any kind of quality deposition when we don’t have all the medical records?'
After Schecter's ruling, Habba said that 'Ms. Zervos must comply with the court's directive and produce all relevant and outstanding discovery.'
'In the meantime, we will be vigorously defending the President against this frivolous lawsuit.'
However, Zervos' attorney Moira Penza said that her team '[didn't] believe [her] client can be further prejudiced in delaying this litigation any longer.'
'We do not believe there are any outstanding issues that would prohibit the parties from engaging in depositions.'
Trump had argued before leaving the White House that Zervos could not pursue her case because a sitting president could not be sued, but the court said in March that the issue became moot when current President Joe Biden took office.
A lawyer for Trump did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Zervos' lawyers did not immediately respond to similar requests.
Zervos alleges the assault occurred two years after her appearance on his reality television show The Apprentice.
She claims Trump forcibly kissed her at a job interview in Manhattan's Trump Tower in early December 2007 and then aggressively groped weeks later at a professional dinner in Los Angeles.
Zervos sued Trump in January 2017 after he branded such allegations by women 'lies' and retweeted a post calling Zervos' claims a 'hoax'.
She has been seeking a retraction or an apology ever since, as well as compensatory damages and punitive damages.
Trump has denied Zervos' claims and called her case politically motivated.
![Summer Zervos' attorney Moira Penza said that her team '[didn't] believe [her] client can be further prejudiced in delaying this litigation any longer.' 'We do not believe there are any outstanding issues that would prohibit the parties from engaging in depositions.' Here, Zervos is pictured with previous attorney Gloria Alfred](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2021/10/05/04/48771297-10059669-image-a-8_1633404799365.jpg)
Summer Zervos' attorney Moira Penza said that her team '[didn't] believe [her] client can be further prejudiced in delaying this litigation any longer.' 'We do not believe there are any outstanding issues that would prohibit the parties from engaging in depositions.' Here, Zervos is pictured with previous attorney Gloria Alfred
Zervos claims Trump subjected her to unwanted kissing and groping after she sought career advice in 2007 - two years after her appearance (above) on Trump's reality television show The Apprentice
She claims Trump forcibly kissed her at a job interview in Manhattan's Trump Tower in early December 2007 and then aggressively groped weeks later at a professional dinner in Los Angeles
Zervos sued Trump in January 2017 after he branded such allegations by women 'lies' and retweeted a post calling Zervos' claims a 'hoax'
In court filings, Zervos had noted she is a Republican.
She also claimed she came forward with her allegations prior to Trump launching his campaign for presidency.
In court documents related to the case, Zervos says she contacted Fox News about the alleged assault in August 2015 but the outlet ignored her.
Zervos also allegedly contacted multiple lawyers about taking legal action back in 2011, including acclaimed women's rights lawyer Gloria Allred - who represented her at the time she went prior to the election but later withdrew from the case without explanation.
Zervos was one of several women who came forward to accuse Trump of sexual misconduct in the weeks leading up to the 2016 presidential election as he came under fire for bragging about grabbing women's genitals in a now-notorious Access Hollywood clip with Billy Bush.
Former Elle magazine columnist E. Jean Carroll is also suing Trump for defamation after he denied having raped her in the Bergdorf Goodman department store in Manhattan in the mid-1990s.
Trump has denied claims by several women of improper sexual conduct.
Zervos sued Trump in January 2017 after he branded such allegations by women 'lies' and retweeted a post calling Zervos' claims a 'hoax'. She is pictured leaving court in 2018
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