Court says Zervos suit vs. Trump can go on

A New York appellate court ruled Thursday that President Trump must face a defamation lawsuit filed by former “Apprentice” contestant Summer Zervos, one of about a dozen women who accused Trump of sexual misconduct shortly before the 2016 election.

Trump has called Zervos and the other women who made accusations against him “liars,” prompting Zervos to file a lawsuit in 2017.

Trump’s lawyers have tried unsuccessfully to block Zervos’ suit, arguing that the president is immune from such lawsuits in state court.

In their ruling Thursday, a panel of New York appellate judges rejected that argument, citing the U. S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Clinton v. Jones, which established that presidents can be sued while in office for unofficial acts.

“Contrary to defendant’s contention, Clinton v Jones did not suggest that its reasoning would not apply to state court actions. It merely identified a potential constitutional concern. Notwithstanding that concern, this Court should not be deterred from holding that a state court can exercise jurisdiction over the President as a defendant in a civil lawsuit,” they said in their decision.

Zervos’ legal team hailed the ruling as an affirmation that Trump “is not above the law.”

“The case has proceeded in the trial court and discovery continues,” Mariann Wang, Zervos’ attor- ney, said in a statement. “We look forward to proving to a jury that Ms. Zervos told the truth about Defendant’s unwanted sexual groping and holding him accountable for his malicious lies.”

Zervos has claimed that Trump forcibly kissed and groped her during a December 2007 encounter at the Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles. Trump denied the allegations.