Judge Moves Forward With Summer Zervos Case Against Trump

By Ted Johnson

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – A New York judge set a series of deadlines for former “Apprentice” contestant Summer Zervos’ defamation lawsuit against President Donald Trump, as she declined to put the case on hold pending an appeal from Trump’s legal team.

The judge, Jennifer Schecter, earlier this year refused to dismiss the suit, in which Zervos claims that Trump defamed her in denying her allegations of sexual harassment. Zervos came forward with the accusations in October of 2016, following the release of the now-infamous “Access Hollywood” tape.

At a hearing on Tuesday, Trump’s attorney, Marc Kasowitz, had sought to put the case on hold until they could appeal to a higher New York court and even the Supreme Court.

“It’s merely seeking a determination at the highest level of competent jurisdiction as to the resolution of this very important constitutional issue,” Kasowitz said, according to Reuters.

Trump denied Zervos’ claims. She contends that he sexual harassed her in meetings in which she was seeking career advice after her tenure on the show.

Zervos’ lawyers have been investigating records of how officials treated multiple claims of sexual harassment in the waning weeks of the presidential campaign.

Schecter also set a deadline for depositions of Jan. 31, 2019, raising the possibility that Trump himself will be questioned in the case. She also set deadlines for discovery, which is likely to lead to further motions and legal wrinkles in the case this summer.