OAN’s Abril Elfi
12:33 PM – Saturday, January 13, 2024
A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit against former President Donald Trump, alleging he was involved with a fraudulent marketing company.
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On Friday, District Judge Lorna Schofield dismissed a lawsuit that was filed in 2018 and claimed that Donald Trump had ties to a fraudulent marketing company weeks before the trial was scheduled to begin.
The lawsuit claims that Trump used his reality TV show “The Celebrity Apprentice” and other promotional events as vehicles to boost ACN Opportunity, a telecommunications marketing company connected to a nonprofit that appealed to teens with Trump’s brand, in exchange for “secret” payments totaling millions of dollars.
According to the lawsuit, the scheme recruited teenagers and promised them success as “The Trumps of Tomorrow” in order to prey on investors.
Schofield encouraged the plaintiffs to file their claims in state court, stating that it would be a more appropriate place for the case to be tried than federal court, where class action status had previously been denied.
“Because this case now involves only three individual plaintiffs asserting claims under their respective states’ laws, it is not better suited for adjudication in this court than in state courts, particularly those of California, Maryland, and Pennsylvania,” the judge wrote. “Even though discovery has been completed and certain motions have been decided, retaining jurisdiction would not serve the economy or convenience.”
Clifford Robert, an attorney for the 45th president, said in a statement Friday evening, “Having already declined class certification, we are pleased that the Court dismissed the nominal claims of the three remaining plaintiffs.”
The case was expected to go to trial on January 29th.
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