President's Niece Mary Trump Says Confidentiality Agreement She Signed Was Based On Fraudulent Information

As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to release opinions on whether prosecutors and House committees should have access to President Trump’s tax returns, his niece, Mary L. Trump, has asked a New York court to lift a restraining order against her because the confidentiality agreement she signed was based on fraudulent information.

In an affidavit filed in New York Supreme Court, Mary Trump, a clinical psychologist, says she never believed the confidentiality agreement signed two decades ago would prevent her from writing a book about her uncle’s character. A hearing is set for July 10.

The filing came a day after an appellate court lifted a restraining order against Simon & Schuster, opening the way for distribution of “Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man.” Preorders have boosted the book to the top of bestseller lists ahead of the July 28 publication date, and thousands of copies already have been sent to retailers.

“The legitimate interest in preserving family secrets may be one thing for the family of a real estate developer, no matter how successful; it is another matter for the family of the president of the United States,” Presiding Justice Alan Scheinkman wrote in lifting the order.

President Trump’s brother, Robert, asked the courts to block publication.

The confidentiality agreement was part of a settlement of an inheritance dispute involving her grandfather's estate. Mary Trump, whose father Fred Jr. died of an alcohol-related disease, said she agreed to the settlement based on asset valuations that since have proved inaccurate. She said in the affidavit she never would have entered the settlement if she had known the valuations were “fraudulent.”

“I never believed that the settlement agreement resolving discrete financial disputes could possibly restrict me from telling the story of my life or publishing a book discussing anything contained in the book, including the conduct and character of my uncle, the sitting president of the United States, during his campaign for reelection,” she said in the affidavit.

The affidavit also notes the president has written several books about his finances and business dealings that may have breached the confidentiality agreement.

Simon & Schuster said the book reveals the “nightmare of traumas” that shaped the president and Mary Trump’s background in psychological disorders puts her in a unique position to comment on the president’s character. The publisher also has said Mary Trump was the one who leaked some of the president’s tax returns to the media.

The Supreme Court is set to release opinions in three cases Monday on whether New York prosecutors and House investigators can have access to the president’s tax returns. New York is investigating whether any laws were violated when then-candidate Trump arranged for hush money to be paid to two women who claimed they had affairs with Trump. House Democrats have said they need the returns to determine whether tax laws need revision.