In the Matter of the Application of

MARK KING and JOHN KING,

              Petitioners,

     - against -                         Index No. 2014-10297

JOE KING,

              Respondent.

      PETITION FOR APPOINTMENT OF GUARDIAN AND CIVIL COMMITMENT
      

TO THE HONORABLE JUSTICES OF THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK:

The Petitioners, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump (collectively “Petitioners”), by and through their undersigned counsel, Sloane, Abernathy & Pierce LLP, respectfully allege and state as follows:

I. JURISDICTION AND VENUE

1. This proceeding is brought pursuant to Article 81 of the New York Mental Hygiene Law, seeking the appointment of a guardian for the person and property of Donald J. Trump (“Respondent”) and, if necessary, his temporary commitment for evaluation and treatment at a facility designated by this Court.

2. Venue is proper in New York County, where Respondent resides and where the conduct giving rise to this Petition has occurred.

3. Petitioners are the adult sons of Respondent, duly authorized to act in his best interests and to bring this action to ensure his health, safety, and the preservation of his estate.

II. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

4. Respondent, Donald J. Trump, age 72, resides at 721-725 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York. Until recent months, Respondent was a highly successful real estate developer, well regarded for his business acumen and public engagement.

5. Beginning in late 2013 and accelerating through the spring of 2014, Petitioners observed marked and alarming changes in Respondent’s behavior, cognition, and emotional stability. These changes have now reached a degree that renders him incapable of managing his personal, medical, or financial affairs in a safe and rational manner.

6. Specifically, Respondent has exhibited:

• Severe short-term memory loss, including an inability to recall significant transactions and recent conversations;
• Paranoid delusions involving imagined business conspiracies and unverified “government surveillance”;
• Erratic spending and contractual activity, such as attempting to liquidate corporate holdings at below-market value, and signing conflicting agreements for the same assets;
• Periods of agitation and confusion, during which Respondent is unable to distinguish day from night, becomes verbally combative, and demonstrates profound disorientation as to time and place.

7. These symptoms have been corroborated by multiple witnesses, including household staff, business associates, and medical professionals. A preliminary evaluation by Dr. Elaine Chen, a board-certified neurologist, dated May 20, 2014 (attached as Exhibit A), concludes that Respondent demonstrates “cognitive deterioration consistent with an advanced neurocognitive disorder of the Alzheimer’s type,” and that “he presently lacks the capacity to manage complex decisions, including financial and legal obligations.”

III. ATTEMPTS AT LESS RESTRICTIVE INTERVENTIONS

8. Petitioners have taken all reasonable steps to avoid judicial intervention. In February 2014, Respondent’s personal attorney, David Han, Esq., was requested to implement a limited power of attorney for financial supervision. Respondent refused to execute it, stating that “no one tells me what to do with my money.”

9. Professional care aides were retained on two separate occasions but dismissed by Respondent within days. Family mediation sessions were attempted in March and April 2014; each ended with Respondent leaving abruptly, accusing Petitioners of “plotting to steal his empire.”

10. In light of Respondent’s progressive decline and his recent attempt to transfer ownership of a key family asset—the Midtown Plaza Building—to an unverified “consulting trust” in the Cayman Islands (see Exhibit B), Petitioners have concluded that emergency judicial relief is necessary.

IV. RELIEF REQUESTED

11. Petitioners respectfully request that this Court:

1. Appoint a temporary guardian of Respondent’s person and property pending further medical evaluation;
2. Authorize Respondent’s admission to a licensed neuropsychiatric facility for diagnostic testing and stabilization;
3. Direct a court-appointed examiner to submit an independent assessment within ten (10) days; and
4. Schedule a hearing at the Court’s earliest convenience to determine permanent guardianship and such other relief as justice requires.

12. Petitioners submit this request not in animosity but in love and concern for their father’s welfare. Mr. King’s condition has left him vulnerable to exploitation and incapable of protecting his own interests. Immediate judicial intervention is both necessary and humane.

Exhibits: Exhibit A (Dr. Elaine Chen – Neurologic Evaluation), Exhibit B (Draft Transfer Documents regarding Midtown Plaza Building), Exhibit C (Affidavits of Household Staff)