This courtroom sketch shows former US president Donald Trump appearing for his New York arraignment. Reuters
This courtroom sketch shows former US president Donald Trump appearing for his New York arraignment. Reuters
This courtroom sketch shows former US president Donald Trump appearing for his New York arraignment. Reuters
This courtroom sketch shows former US president Donald Trump appearing for his New York arraignment. Reuters

What's next for Donald Trump after his arraignment and arrest?


Kyle Fitzgerald
  • English
  • Arabic

Donald Trump on Tuesday became the first former US president to be criminally charged after he pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts stemming from an investigation into alleged hush money paid to adult film actress Stormy Daniels during his 2016 presidential campaign.

The spectacle that unfolded in New York — in which throngs of protesters and supporters as well as hundreds of members of the media had gathered outside the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse — is only the beginning of what could be a fairly lengthy process.

It could take months or even longer for the legal process to play out and for the trial — scheduled to begin in January 2024 — to conclude, if it goes ahead as scheduled.

Here is what will come next for America's first criminally charged former president:

The 'discovery' phase

Manhattan prosecutors and Mr Trump's defence team must first engage in what is called the discovery phase, in which both parties exchange information on the evidence they are to present during the trial. They also will exchange information on witnesses they intend to call.

Prosecutors, for instance, must hand over evidence they uncovered during the investigation, as well as testimony presented to the New York grand jury. The Manhattan District Attorney's office must submit all evidence within 15 days of Mr Trump's arraignment, NBC News reported.

During discovery, lawyers may also seek depositions, which the American Bar Association says is one of the most common ways of gathering and presenting evidence.

Depositions allow both parties to know what a witness might say during the trial. The opposing party may also use depositions to try to discredit the witness's evidence.

  • Former US president Donald Trump appears in court in New York City with members of his legal team for an arraignment on charges from his indictment by a Manhattan grand jury after an inquiry into hush money paid to an adult film actress. Reuters
    Former US president Donald Trump appears in court in New York City with members of his legal team for an arraignment on charges from his indictment by a Manhattan grand jury after an inquiry into hush money paid to an adult film actress. Reuters
  • Mr Trump at the defence table with his team of lawyers. AP
    Mr Trump at the defence table with his team of lawyers. AP
  • Mr Trump arrives at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York City. Reuters
    Mr Trump arrives at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York City. Reuters
  • Mr Trump walks towards the Manhattan Criminal Court room in New York. EPA
    Mr Trump walks towards the Manhattan Criminal Court room in New York. EPA
  • The former president leaves Trump Tower for Manhattan criminal court in New York. AP
    The former president leaves Trump Tower for Manhattan criminal court in New York. AP
  • Mr Trump arrives at the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse after his indictment by a grand jury. Reuters
    Mr Trump arrives at the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse after his indictment by a grand jury. Reuters
  • Mr Trump arrives at the Manhattan District Attorney's office. AP
    Mr Trump arrives at the Manhattan District Attorney's office. AP
  • Mr Trump leaves Trump Tower in New York before a hearing during which he will face criminal charges. AP
    Mr Trump leaves Trump Tower in New York before a hearing during which he will face criminal charges. AP
  • Police gather outside the courthouse, where Mr Trump will be arraigned. Getty / AFP
    Police gather outside the courthouse, where Mr Trump will be arraigned. Getty / AFP
  • Supporters of the former US president protest outside the Manhattan District Attorney's office in New York City. AFP
    Supporters of the former US president protest outside the Manhattan District Attorney's office in New York City. AFP
  • A Trump supporter yells at members of the press outside the Manhattan District Attorney's office. AFP
    A Trump supporter yells at members of the press outside the Manhattan District Attorney's office. AFP
  • A Trump supporter holds a placard outside Trump Tower on the day of Mr Trump's planned court appearance. Reuters
    A Trump supporter holds a placard outside Trump Tower on the day of Mr Trump's planned court appearance. Reuters
  • Anti-Trump protesters unfurl a banner outside the court. Bloomberg
    Anti-Trump protesters unfurl a banner outside the court. Bloomberg
  • A person dressed as Mr Trump rides past Trump Tower. AFP
    A person dressed as Mr Trump rides past Trump Tower. AFP
  • Supporters of Mr Trump argue with counter-protesters outside the Manhattan District Attorney's office. AFP
    Supporters of Mr Trump argue with counter-protesters outside the Manhattan District Attorney's office. AFP
  • A flag with an image of Mr Trump waves outside the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse. Reuters
    A flag with an image of Mr Trump waves outside the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse. Reuters
  • Opponents of Mr Trump protest outside the Manhattan District Attorney's office. AFP
    Opponents of Mr Trump protest outside the Manhattan District Attorney's office. AFP
  • A supporter of former President Donald Trump protests outside Trump Tower in New York. AP Photo
    A supporter of former President Donald Trump protests outside Trump Tower in New York. AP Photo
  • People gather at Collect Pond Park to show their support, or lack thereof, for Mr Trump. EPA
    People gather at Collect Pond Park to show their support, or lack thereof, for Mr Trump. EPA
  • Supporters of Mr Trump stand near Trump Tower in New York, New York. EPA
    Supporters of Mr Trump stand near Trump Tower in New York, New York. EPA

Motions to be filed

Judge Juan Merchan gave Mr Trump's legal team a deadline of August 8 to file motions in the case.

One such motion would be to dismiss the case altogether, which Mr Trump and his legal team have already suggested they intend to do.

“I don't think this case is going to see a jury,” said Joe Tacopina, one of Mr Trump's defence lawyers.

The indictment, filed by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, charges Mr Trump with 34 felony accounts of falsifying business records in New York. But the actual case rests on a legal theory that has never been tested in court.

Mr Trump was accused of arranging a $130,000 payment to Daniels through his lawyer Michael Cohen to buy her silence before the 2016 election.

“The scheme violated New York election law, which makes it a crime to conspire to promote a candidacy by unlawful means,” Mr Bragg said during a Tuesday news conference.

But it remains unclear whether Mr Bragg is able to use evidence of a federal crime to charge a defendant under New York law. Republicans loyal to the former president and even some of his opponents have accused the district attorney of overreach.

“The prosecutor’s overreach sets a dangerous precedent for criminalising political opponents and damages the public’s faith in our justice system,” Senator Mitt Romney, who found Mr Trump guilty in both of his impeachment proceedings, said in a statement.

Mr Trump has also suggested that he intends to file a motion to change the venue from Manhattan to Staten Island, which would affect the jury's make-up.

He has already claimed he would not get a fair trial in Manhattan because of the island's large Democratic population and because he is too well known there.

In the 2020 election, Democratic challenger Joe Biden won the borough of Manhattan by more than 74 per cent.

Under the US Constitution, every defendant has the right to a fair and speedy trial in which they are judged by their peers. Mr Trump's team could argue that the Manhattan electorate would make a fair trial virtually impossible for the Queens native.

Prosecutors would have until September 19 to respond to the defence team's motions.

December 4 hearing

Mr Merchan set the next in-person hearing for December 4, when Mr Trump will be due back in court.

During this hearing, the judge will consider the motions filed by the defence team and whether to dismiss the case.

January 2024 trial start date

Mr Merchan set an initial trial date of January 2024, although that could be dismissed altogether or delayed. x

Under New York law, the prosecution team must be ready to try a felony within six months of arraignment.

But defendants can also try to postpone the proceedings. It is a tactic Mr Trump is already familiar with, having done so over an investigation into his potential mishandling of classified documents.

Democrat-led efforts to hand over his tax returns were not resolved more than a year after he had already left office.

A presidential campaign

What makes Mr Trump different than every other accused criminal is that he is a former president seeking a return to the White House. Mr Trump is currently the front-runner for the Republican nomination, recent data polling has shown.

Should the trial go ahead as scheduled, the January 2024 trial start date would start one month before the Iowa Republican Caucus, the first stop in the US primary season.

And Mr Trump's campaign has already begun fundraising off the indictment itself, selling T-shirts featuring fake mugshots of the Republican contender for $36.

But with the court trial and primary season still several months off, it is almost impossible to predict how Mr Trump's legal predicament will ultimately play out.

Another wild card is that Mr Trump is also at the centre of several other investigations, including one in Georgia about possible election interference. If he is indicted in any other cases, that could affect his New York trial timeline.

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Analysis

Members of Syria's Alawite minority community face threat in their heartland after one of the deadliest days in country’s recent history. Read more

In numbers: China in Dubai

The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000

Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000

Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

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Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council

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Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory

Timeline

2012-2015

The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East

May 2017

The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts

September 2021

Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act

October 2021

Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence 

December 2024

Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group

May 2025

The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan

July 2025

The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan

August 2025

Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision

October 2025

Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange

November 2025

180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

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Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

Updated: April 06, 2023, 7:48 AM