Donald Trump faced a major legal setback in his ongoing courtroom battle against writer E. Jean Carroll. A federal court delivered its latest ruling in the high-profile $83.3 million defamation case, potentially setting the stage for a Supreme Court showdown.
Donald Trump loses Jean Carroll’s appeal case in court
A federal appeals court in New York denied President Donald Trump’s request to have all its judges hear his appeal in the E. Jean Carroll defamation case, USA Today reported on April 29. The ruling keeps an $83.3 million judgment against Trump intact. The decision follows a three-judge panel’s September ruling that upheld the jury’s original award.
The legal battle between Trump and Carroll dates back to 2019 and includes two civil trials. A New York federal jury awarded Carroll $5 million in 2023 after concluding Trump sexually abused her in a 1990s department store incident. That jury also found Trump defamed Carroll when he denied the allegations in 2022.
A separate New York federal jury awarded Carroll $83.3 million in 2024 for defamation. That award covered two lengthy denials Trump made in 2019 when Carroll first went public with her allegations. The full appeals court decided on April 29 not to review that decision.
Trump now faces the prospect of taking the $83.3 million appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. He already awaits a Supreme Court decision on whether it will hear his appeal of the $5 million judgment. Trump posted a bond of about $92 million in 2024 to block Carroll from pursuing his assets during the appeal.
A spokesperson for Trump’s legal team said in a statement that the president will appeal the decision. “The American People stand with President Trump in demanding an immediate end to the unlawful, radical weaponization of our justice system, and a swift dismissal of all of the Witch Hunts,” the spokesperson said. Roberta Kaplan, Carroll’s lawyer, said her team remains “pleased” by the ruling. “E. Jean Carroll is eager for this case, originally filed in 2019, to be over so that she can finally obtain justice,” Kaplan said.
Originally reported by Vritti Johar on Mandatory.com.
