U.S. Supreme Court to hear 3 Trump cases by phone next month

The high court was scheduled to hear the cases last month, but the coronavirus emergency has postponed them until May. File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI
The high court was scheduled to hear the cases last month, but the coronavirus emergency has postponed them until May. File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

April 13 (UPI) -- The U.S. Supreme Court said Monday it will hear oral arguments by teleconference due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis, including multiple tax cases involving President Donald Trump.

There are three cases involving investigations that seek the president's financial and tax records: Trump vs. Vance, Trump vs. Mazars USA and Trump vs. Deutsche Bank.

Trump's legal team has asked the justices in all three cases to reverse lower court rulings that require his accounting firm and two banks to turn over financial documents to investigators.

The Supreme Court said it will begin hearing the cases by phone next month.

In Trump vs. Vance, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance is asking for eight years of Trump's New York state tax returns for a probe into payments made to two women, adult film star Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal, during the 2016 presidential campaign.

The appellate court said Vance's subpoena was lawful because it seeks Trump's private tax returns and financial information related to his private business, not his official capacity as president.

In Trump vs. Mazars USA, the House oversight committee seeks eight years of financial records after Trump's former attorney, Michael Cohen, testified the president manipulated the value of his assets for personal gain. An appeals court said Trump must hand over the records.

In Trump vs. Deutsche Bank, the House intelligence and financial services committees subpoenaed the bank and Capital One for financial documents related to investigations of Russian money laundering and potential U.S. influence.

Trump's attorneys argued that releasing the records violates his right to privacy, but an appeals court said the release is in the "public interest."

The Supreme Court was expected to hear the cases last month.

"In keeping with public health guidance in response to COVID-19, the justices and counsel will all participate remotely," the court said in a statement. "The court anticipates providing a live audio feed of these arguments to news media."

U.S. copes with COVID-19 pandemic

Bass Pro Shops marketing manager David Smith (R) carries a box of donated face masks into Mercy Health in Chesterfield, Mo., on May 13. The company is donating 1 million FDA-approved ASTM Level 1 Procedure Face Masks to healthcare workers and first responders working on the front lines of the pandemic. Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI | License Photo

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