Deutsche Bank and Capital One have until Tuesday afternoon to tell a New York appellate court if they are in possession of President Trump’s tax returns, according court order issued Monday. If the two banks cannot answer the question by Tuesday at 4 p.m., they will have to explain why “in detail[.]” The order comes after lawyers for the banks repeatedly refused to tell the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last week if they were in possession of the president’s tax returns, blaming their non-disclosure on “contractual and statutory obligations.” “Should we go to court and seek an order? I'm serious. We need to know,” U.S. Circuit Judge Peter W. Hall reportedly told Deutsche Bank attorney Raphael Prober during Friday’s proceedings.
The case came to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals after Trump appealed a lower court’s decision, which decided not to block Congressional subpoenas seeking access to his financial records from Deutsche Bank and Capital One. According to CNN, the judges directed the lawyers to file letters under seal within 48 hours, disclosing whether or not they were in possession of the tax returns. While the lawyers have said they would respond to the request in writing, it’s not clear if the banks ended up providing the information.
