A dozen Trump legal advisers told The Globe and Mail in interviews that the former president’s lawyers are preparing a lawsuit over his billions of dollars in losses.
Lawyers for the president’s sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, and senior White House adviser Jason Greenblatt said they were considering suing the president for up to $20m in legal fees.
“We will be prepared to take on the president, to put on a show,” said Greenblatts, a partner at Perkins Coie, a law firm in New York City.
“It is a huge problem that we can’t fix.”
The Trump administration has said it will file an emergency stay of the lawsuit and file a notice of objection to the injunction, although it has not said when it will begin to do so.
The court order would prevent the government from removing the Trump name from Trump University and any trademarks that could be used in the program, such as those associated with the Trump brand.
The president has said that he was not involved in the project and did not receive any compensation from the company.
Trump University was founded by a California-based developer, Michael Sexton, and was run by his family and associates.
In a court filing in September, Sexton said the case would be “vital” to the administration’s case that the university was not a legitimate business.
Trump, who has said he is not a registered voter, said in a statement at the time that he would fight to stay the order.
The Trump lawyers, however, said they have not made any decisions about the case.
“There is no plan to file a motion to stay,” said Jay Sekulow, a senior adviser to the president.
“The president is not interested in spending money on this, but the fact that he is the only one that can do so is just another indication that the administration is willing to take any legal action necessary to keep the presidency.”
In a separate statement, the Trump Organization said that it was “proud to stand behind Mr. Trump and his business and the president is committed to continuing to work to make the Trump family a success in the years to come.”
It also added that Trump will continue to invest in the development of the Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and the Trump National Golf Club in Washington.
“This lawsuit is an appropriate remedy for the President’s egregious conduct and is the appropriate and proportionate response to his egregious violations of the law,” the statement said.
The legal action is expected to be filed on Monday.
“You’re going to have to see some changes in the next couple of days,” said Peter Breen, a former federal prosecutor and a partner in the Washington, D.C.-based law firm Covington & Burling.
“But I think that the president will be in a better position than the court will be to challenge that.”
While it is rare for a president to be sued, it is also unusual for one of his business partners to be named in a lawsuit.
Trump has been embroiled in a series of lawsuits over his business dealings since the 1980s.
The Washington Post reported in December that Trump had sued five women alleging that he had raped them, a claim he has denied.
He has also been sued by former employees and others who say they were fired for complaining about his management style.
A third lawsuit was filed by former Mar-A-Lago employee Susan Rice in October, who alleged that she was fired for speaking out about sexual harassment and retaliation.
The New York Times reported in January that Trump paid more than $4 million in legal bills related to his lawsuits.
“These are people who were there for years and years,” said Michael Caputo, a lawyer who represented several women in a 2016 class action lawsuit against Trump University.
“They’re being put in a position where they have to deal with Donald Trump and they have no recourse.”
A spokeswoman for Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit include at least three former students, and the case could take months to reach a conclusion.