If Donald Trump fails to to pony up a $454 million bond, could New York Attorney General Letitia James seize his Trump International Golf Club in suburban West Palm Beach?
Bear in mind that legal analysts have long argued that Florida law offers broad protection for assets owned in the state by its permanent residents and property owners. In fact, the state has long been a haven for people at risk of substantial claims in other states and who move here and become residents precisely to guard their assets.
Taking control of the Trump golf club near West Palm Beach would be a significantly tricky endeavor because Palm Beach County actually owns the land. Trump simply developed the property into a golf club and leases it from the county on a long-term contract.
How did end up with Trump International Golf Club in suburban West Palm Beach? A lawsuit dealing with air traffic from Palm Beach International Airport over his Mar-a-Lago club. Yes, really.
These days, the golf club is Trump’s go-to fairway and green when he is in Palm Beach. And it’s where he hosts his annual Super Bowl party.
But he does not own the land on which the club is located.
Trump has a decades-long lease with Palm Beach County for the more than 200 acres. The lease of the central Palm Beach County land dates to the 1990s and a $75 million lawsuit he filed against the county, prompted by his ire over noise from planes flying over his Palm Beach club as they approached or departed from nearby PBIA.
The lawsuit was resolved in 1996 with a long lease on 214 acres just south of the airport. In 2002, the county struck a deal to lease Trump more land for a nine-hole golf course.
The agreements require Trump to make monthly payments that have increased over the years.