President Donald J. Trump has suffered another legal setback after the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to reconsider its earlier refusal to hear his appeal of a $5 million civil verdict awarded to writer E. Jean Carroll. The unsigned order offered no explanation, but the message was unusually simple for Washington: the case stays where the courts below left it.
For a president accustomed to treating legal battles like political campaigns—with appeals, counterattacks and plenty of courtroom paperwork—the latest development provides another chapter in the long-running Carroll saga. The Supreme Court’s latest refusal follows its June decision declining to hear Trump’s initial appeal, while a separate $83.3 million defamation case involving Carroll remains before the justices.
Supreme Court Closes One Door as Another Carroll Appeal Remains
The $5 million case arose from Carroll’s allegations that Trump sexually assaulted her in a Manhattan department-store dressing room in the 1990s and later defamed her when he denied the allegations in 2022. A 2023 jury found Trump liable for sexually abusing Carroll and defaming her, although it did not find him liable for rape under the legal claim presented to the jury. Trump has consistently denied Carroll’s allegations and has argued that the trial was unfair.
Trump’s lawyers subsequently asked the Supreme Court to reconsider its June refusal, arguing that a separate presidential-immunity dispute could affect the $5 million judgment. But the justices declined to reopen the matter. The court rarely grants rehearing requests, meaning the latest decision represents another significant obstacle for Trump’s effort to overturn this particular verdict.
The $83.3 Million Question Is Still Waiting
The legal drama, however, is far from finished. Carroll also won an $83.3 million defamation judgment in a separate case concerning statements Trump made in 2019 while he was serving his first presidential term. Trump and the Justice Department have now asked the Supreme Court to review that judgment, arguing that presidential immunity protects him from civil liability for statements made while in office.
That argument gives the next stage of the saga considerably higher stakes. The Supreme Court’s 2024 presidential-immunity ruling concerned criminal prosecution of former presidents for official acts, while the Carroll litigation involves civil damages. Whether that constitutional doctrine can shield Trump from the separate $83.3 million judgment is therefore a question the justices could still have to confront.
For now, the $5 million verdict has survived another trip to the nation’s highest court, and Carroll has already received more than $5.6 million including interest after a federal judge ordered payment in July. Trump continues to dispute the underlying allegations and the legal conclusions against him, while the separate $83.3 million appeal keeps the broader courtroom battle alive. OGM News will continue to watch the Supreme Court for the next ruling in this extraordinary legal saga.
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