Trump appealed to Macau in 2010 to intervene in litigation on the use of the name

Dand according to documents obtained by Hong Kong Free Press (HKFP) through the United States Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), Trump contested a 2010 judicial decision that rejected Trump Organization’s request to withdraw from local entrepreneurs the rights to the designation “Trump Limited Company”, registered in Macau in August 2005.

In a letter sent to then chief executive Fernando Chui Sai On, Trump classified the decision as a “serious injustice” and accused Macau’s judicial system of being “contaminated and controlled by corrupt individuals”.

The entrepreneur argued that his name was widely known worldwide, including in China and Macao, thanks to his real estate projects, books and the television program “The Apprentice”.

To support the claim, Trump attached data from television audiences in the United States concerning the program “The Celebrity Learning”, although these figures did not demonstrate their popularity in Macau or mainland China.

The dispute originated when Trump attempted to obtain exclusive rights to the “Trump” brand in the territory, at a time when he expressed interest in expanding his business to Macau, which in 2006 surpassed Las Vegas as the world’s largest center of the game.

After losing the case in Macau courts, Trump also sought support from the U.S. State Department. In a letter sent in 2011 to the then US Trade Secretary, Gary Locke, described the courts of China and Macau as “corrupt” and criticized Chinese business culture.

Trump’s then personal attorney, Michael Cohen, also contacted US authorities, considering the judicial decision “a terrible injustice” and arguing that the Trump brand was internationally recognized.

Despite the appeals, neither the Macau Government nor the US authorities intervened in the process. However, the situation changed years later.

In 2017, a few months after Trump took over the presidency of the United States for the first time, a company associated with the group was allowed to register four new brands in Macao in the areas of real estate, hospitality, casinos, catering and conference centers.

Development rekindled questions about possible conflicts of interest between Trump's private business and his political functions, especially at a time when Macau was preparing to renew gambling concessions.

Trump had already tried to enter the game sector in Macau in 2001, joining a consortium that unsuccessfully ran for one of the three licenses then awarded by the local government. The proposal was among the worst ranked of the 18 applications submitted.

The documents revealed also show that Trump argued that a possible investment in Macao would allow jobs to be created and to introduce into the territory what he described as “first-class Western design, construction and services”.