A hearing will begin soon this morning in Manhattan in @NewYorkStateAG's lawsuit to dissolve the NRA.

Originally slated as oral arguments on a motion to dismiss, the NRA wants to pause proceedings after filing bankruptcy.

Live-tweet ahead.

Background https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/new-york-attorney-general-urges-judge-not-to-let-nras-bankruptcy-filing-put-a-stop-to-dissolution-of-organization/

Proceedings were supposed to begin at 10 a.m. ET, but they have been slightly delayed for technical reasons.

Stand by.

Judge Joel M. Cohen is on the call, and we're about to begin.

Assistant AGs:

Emily Stern
James Sheehan
Monica Connell &
Jonathan Conley, who is handling arguments

Defense counsel

Sarah Rogers for the NRA

Kent Correll for Wayne LaPierre

Seth Farber for Wilson Phillips

Judge Cohen reviews the NYAG's arguments that these proceedings should not be stayed by the NRA's bankruptcy proceedings.

The oral arguments today with resume as scheduled, without objection by the NRA.

Sarah Rogers is up first for the NRA, arguing that the Manhattan Supreme Court is not the appropriate venue for the proceedings.

The NRA wants the case transferred to Albany, where they were incorporated.

Rogers:

"If you're a non-profit and you're fighting for your very existence, you have the right to have that fight in the [venue] where you chose."

Rogers claims the NRA has never had an address in New York County designated.

"They've also lodged claims against certain individual defendants," where venue is more flexible, she adds.

Judge Cohen presses the NRA's counsel on her parsing about their 'principal office':

"You're using the word 'principal office' as a careful lawyer."

Judge Cohen:

"The venue statute says that there is normal venue unless otherwise prescribed by law."

Assistant AG Jonathan Conley is up now for New York.

He says that the venue is established by the certificate of incorporation, which he says was in New York County.

Department of State records support that the NRA repeatedly reaffirmed that venue, Conley said.

Reminder:

The three NRA motions at issue during this morning's oral arguments are for transfer, a stay and/or dismissal.

We're on the first one.

AAG Conley:

"As your honor noted, if the NRA wanted to change its county location... it could have easily done so."

"The attorney general brought this action in New York county because venue is proper here."

Judge Cohen asks the AAG a hypothetical question he asked NRA counsel:

"What if there is no office of the corporation?"

AAG: Then it would be treated as a foreign corporation, and any county would be proper.