Trump Ordered to Pay E. Jean Carroll Nearly $5.8 Million With Interest
A federal judge ordered the release Wednesday of more than $5 million to writer E. Jean Carroll, rejecting last-minute attempts by President Donald Trump to delay payment of a jury verdict that found him liable for sexually abusing and defaming her.
U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan ordered the disbursement of nearly $5.8 million, representing the original $5 million verdict plus interest accrued over three years. The money had been held in a court-controlled escrow account since a 2023 civil jury found Trump liable for sexually abusing Carroll in a department store dressing room in the 1990s and for defaming her when he denied the allegations.
Trump's Attempts to Delay Payment
Trump's lawyers sought an emergency stay of Kaplan's order Wednesday, but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit quickly rejected the request. Trump's legal team then filed a notice of appeal, contesting the judge's decision to release the funds.
In his order, Kaplan did not mince words about the delay. "Defendant has been stalling this case for years," he wrote. "It is time for him to 'do equity' and pay the judgment."
Carroll's attorney, Roberta Kaplan, called Trump's continued legal maneuvering "gamesmanship," accusing him in filings of trying "to buy time so he can try to concoct some new basis to put off paying" Carroll. A spokesperson for Trump's legal team pushed back in a statement, referring to the case as part of "the Democrat-funded travesty of the Carroll Hoaxes."
The Case's Long Legal History
The $5 million verdict stems from a 2023 trial in which a jury concluded, in under three hours, that Trump had more likely than not sexually abused Carroll and defamed her by denying the allegations after she went public in 2019. Trump has repeatedly denied Carroll's account, at various points claiming he had never met her, saying she was "not my type," and describing her allegations as a "hoax" and a "con."
A second, related case followed in 2024, when a different jury awarded Carroll an additional $83.3 million in damages tied to further denials Trump made about the alleged assault during his first term in the White House. Trump has argued he deserves presidential immunity for those denials and is pursuing a separate appeal of that larger verdict.
The Supreme Court declined on June 29 to hear Trump's appeal of the $5 million verdict, a decision that appeared to clear the way for Carroll to finally collect the judgment. Trump has since asked the Supreme Court to reconsider that decision, arguing that constitutional claims in his ongoing appeal of the larger $83.3 million verdict could affect the smaller case as well.
What Happens Next
It remains unclear exactly when the funds will be transferred to Carroll following Wednesday's order. Trump's legal team has not indicated whether it will pursue further emergency appeals beyond the notice already filed.
Carroll first sued Trump in November 2019, meaning the litigation has now stretched on for more than six and a half years. Her legal team has argued in court filings that Trump's continued appeals amount to an effort to "drag out proceedings, file meritless appeals, and raise new defenses when old defenses fail."
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