Nearly two and a half years after a New York jury found Trump guilty, his attorneys are preparing to argue before a five-judge appellate panel that the conviction should be reversed.

Lawyers from the prominent law firm Sullivan & Cromwell have characterized the case as politically motivated, describing it in court filings as the most politically charged prosecution in American history.

They argue that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat, brought the charges during a highly contentious presidential campaign while Trump was the leading Republican candidate.

The attorneys contend that both the timing and circumstances of the prosecution were unprecedented and warrant overturning the jury’s verdict.

Thursday’s hearing before the Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court represents another significant legal battle for Trump, who became the first former U.S. president convicted of a felony.

The case stems from a six-week trial in Manhattan during the spring of 2024, when prosecutors accused Trump of participating in a scheme to conceal a $130,000 hush-money payment made by his former attorney, Michael Cohen, to adult film actress Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

Prosecutors argued that Trump falsified business records connected to reimbursements made to Cohen to disguise the true purpose of the payments.

The jury ultimately convicted Trump on all 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree.

Following his victory in the 2024 presidential election, Trump received an unconditional discharge, meaning he faced no prison sentence, probation, or fine. The sentencing decision came just days before his return to the White House.

The appeal now places the landmark conviction back under judicial scrutiny, with Trump’s attorneys seeking to persuade a majority of the five appellate judges that legal errors justify reversing the verdict.

The outcome could determine whether Trump’s historic criminal conviction remains on the record or is overturned.