A New York judge ruled on Thursday that former US president Donald Trump and two of his adult children must answer questions under oath in the state attorney general's civil investigation into their family company's business.
Justice Arthur Engoron of New York state court in Manhattan ruled in favour of Attorney General Letitia James, who sought to enforce subpoenas to compel testimony from Mr Trump, his son Donald Trump Jr and his daughter Ivanka Trump.
Mr Engoron said Ms James had “the clear right” to question the Trumps after having uncovered “copious evidence of possible financial fraud”.
He directed the Trumps to submit to questioning within 21 days.
The decision followed a two-hour hearing in which the Trumps' lawyers accused Ms James of doing an end run around their clients' constitutional rights by seeking evidence she could them use against them in a parallel criminal investigation.
Mr Trump's lawyer Alina Habba accused Ms James of “selective prosecution and prosecutorial misconduct that this country has never seen”, citing statements reflecting the Democratic attorney general's “vile disdain” for the former president.
“If he was not who he is, she would not be doing this,” Ms Habba said. “This court can help stop this circus.”
Kevin Wallace, a lawyer from Ms James's office, rejected Ms Habba's comments.
“They haven't shown anything here that says it's unfair,” Mr Wallace said.
Last month, Ms James said her nearly three-year investigation into the Trump Organisation had uncovered significant evidence of possible fraud.
She described what she called misleading statements about the values of the “Trump Brand” and six Trump properties, saying the company may have inflated real estate values to obtain bank loans and reduced them to lower tax bills.
The investigation partially overlaps a criminal investigation now led by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg in which the Trump Organisation and its long-time chief financial officer pleaded not guilty last July to tax fraud charges.
Mr Trump, who has not announced whether he will run again for president in 2024, has called Ms James's investigation a political “witch hunt” and is suing to try to stop it.
The hearing followed last week's decision by Mr Trump's long-time accounting firm Mazars USA to cut ties with him and the Trump Organisation, saying it could no longer stand behind a decade of financial statements.
Lawyers for Mr Trump have said he did not know enough to respond to allegations of inaccurate valuations, though he detailed some possible discrepancies in a five-page statement on Tuesday.
The Trumps have not been accused of criminal wrongdoing.
What is graphene?
Graphene is a single layer of carbon atoms arranged like honeycomb.
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were "playing about" with sticky tape and graphite - the material used as "lead" in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But as they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment had led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
At the time, many believed it was impossible for such thin crystalline materials to be stable. But examined under a microscope, the material remained stable, and when tested was found to have incredible properties.
It is many times times stronger than steel, yet incredibly lightweight and flexible. It is electrically and thermally conductive but also transparent. The world's first 2D material, it is one million times thinner than the diameter of a single human hair.
But the 'sticky tape' method would not work on an industrial scale. Since then, scientists have been working on manufacturing graphene, to make use of its incredible properties.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics. Their discovery meant physicists could study a new class of two-dimensional materials with unique properties.
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
The bio
Favourite book: Peter Rabbit. I used to read it to my three children and still read it myself. If I am feeling down it brings back good memories.
Best thing about your job: Getting to help people. My mum always told me never to pass up an opportunity to do a good deed.
Best part of life in the UAE: The weather. The constant sunshine is amazing and there is always something to do, you have so many options when it comes to how to spend your day.
Favourite holiday destination: Malaysia. I went there for my honeymoon and ended up volunteering to teach local children for a few hours each day. It is such a special place and I plan to retire there one day.
