The legal team of Trump is planning to apply to the state appellate court to reverse the decision of Judge Juan M. Merchan last week, which scheduled the case for sentencing on Friday – a little more than a week before he is sworn in for his second term. In a series of recent rulings, Merchan rejected Trump’s request to dismiss the verdict and indictment on the grounds of presidential immunity and his impending return to the White House. In a decision last week, the judge indicated that he is unlikely to sentence Trump, a Republican, to any punishment for his historic conviction on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Acknowledging the demands of the transition process, he gave Trump the option to attend in person or appear virtually by video. Trump’s lawyers argued in court papers Monday that their planned appeal to the Appellate Division of the state’s trial court triggers what is known as an automatic stay, or pause, in the proceedings. If that does not happen, they argued, Merchan should then grant a stay and prevent the sentencing from taking place as scheduled on Friday.