In the ongoing civil fraud trial threatening Donald Trump's real estate empire, his lawyers have shifted blame onto his accountants, Mazars USA LLP. Trump's lawyers spent Tuesday examining Mazars' role in preparing financial statements at the center of the lawsuit brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James. The defense called Jason Flemmons, a former deputy chief accountant at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, as an expert witness to question Mazars' practices and challenge earlier testimony given by retired Mazars partner Donald Bender.

Bender, the first witness called by state lawyers, had testified that he had asked for all property appraisals from the Trump Organization executive, but was surprised to later learn that some had not been provided. Flemmons, however, deemed Bender's claim as "not professionally plausible" since requesting appraisals not used for financial statements is not required under professional accounting standards. Flemmons emphasized that the compilation of financial statements, also known as compilations, only requires documentation used to determine asset value. He stated that Trump's company met the requirements by providing justifications for the determined values and explaining instances where different standards were used.

Flemmons, who is now a senior managing director at Ankura Consulting Group, clarified that his testimony did not address the state's specific claims that Trump executives used various methods, sometimes misclassifying properties, to inflate their values. He stressed that Mazars or any accountant conducting compilation services would not be obligated to request appraisals that were not used to determine values on the statements.

New York Attorney General Letitia James alleges that Donald Trump, his company, and top executives exaggerated his wealth by billions of dollars on the financial statements to present a more successful image. These statements were shared with banks, insurers, and others to secure loans and make deals. James is seeking more than $300 million in alleged ill-gotten gains and wants the defendants banned from conducting business in New York.

Judge Arthur Engoron, prior to the trial, ruled that Trump and the other defendants committed fraud by exaggerating his net worth and asset values on the financial statements. The judge imposed a punishment that could potentially strip Trump of some of his prominent properties, although an appeals court is currently keeping them under his control. Trump has continuously denied any wrongdoing, and Flemmons echoed his assertions that disclaimers on the financial statements protect him from liability.

During the trial, Trump's lawyers argued that even if overvaluation occurred on some properties, they were significantly undervalued on others, balancing out any misstatements. Real estate developer and Trump friend Steven Witkoff testified that Trump's Doral, Florida, golf resort was severely undervalued on the financial statements. However, Judge Engoron dismissed this argument as ridiculous.

In terms of accountability, Donald Trump Jr., an executive vice president of the Trump Organization, testified that he signed off on statements as a trustee of his father's trust but left the work to outside accountants and the company's former finance chief, Allen Weisselberg. Eric Trump, another of Trump's sons, echoed this sentiment, stating that he relied on Mazars, "one of the biggest accounting firms in the country," for assurance of the financial statements' accuracy.

As the trial continues, Trump's lawyers are attempting to counter the state's claims and defend the former president's real estate empire. The outcome of this trial will have significant implications for Trump's financial standing and potential legal repercussions.