Less than two days before the scheduled beginning of a trial over the alleged 2015 assault of protesters near Trump Tower by Trump Organization employees, Justice Dianne Renwick issued a stay in the Appellate Division, First Department.

Renwick stayed the video deposition of President Donald Trump, which was ordered by Bronx Supreme Court Administrative Judge Doris Gonzalez last week. At the request of the protesters' lawyers, she also stayed the trial itself while the issue of the deposition is resolved.

Lawyers with Kasowitz Benson Torres, who are representing Trump, filed for the stay pending a motion to appeal Gonzalez's order Tuesday afternoon.

Gonzalez ordered Sept. 20 that Trump's testimony is "indispensable" in the case and that he should be deposed by video.

In arguments before Renwick, attorney Marc Kasowitz repeatedly referenced the justice's own decision in a 2018 defamation case involving Trump and Summer Zervos, a former "Apprentice" contestant.

In that case, Renwick found that Trump can face civil suits in New York even though he's the president.

Speaking during informal arguments in a conference room Tuesday, she said accommodations would be made for Trump's schedule and responsibilities if he is deposed. Her main question, she said, was about the importance of Trump's testimony and his relationship with the other defendants, who were his employees while he led the Trump Organization.

Kasowitz said there's already plenty of evidence available about Trump's role as employer. He argued that Trump's busy schedule as president means a balance must be considered in terms of the necessity of his testimony.

Nathaniel Charny of Charny & Wheeler, who is one of the lawyers representing the protesters, told Renwick they've actively avoided making the deposition process onerous for Trump.

"Any time, any place, any location" would be fine for a video deposition, Charny said.

Trump would be presented to the jury as an individual employer, Charny said. He added that Trump has shown some knowledge of the incident in media interviews, which makes Charny and his colleagues interested in his testimony.

Attorneys for both sides will file papers elaborating on their positions in the coming weeks. No date for a hearing was set Tuesday afternoon.