Donald Trump is seeking to block the release of more than $5.8 million he owes E Jean Carroll following her 2023 civil victory against him, arguing that a federal judge should not yet order the funds transferred from a court-controlled account.
Trump deposited the jury award plus 11 percent interest into the escrow account roughly six weeks after Carroll won her sexual abuse and defamation case. The former president has denied all wrongdoing in connection with the verdict.
The legal battle over releasing the money intensified after the U.S. Supreme Court declined on June 29 to review Trump's appeal of the judgment. That rejection prompted Carroll's legal team to ask Manhattan federal judge Lewis Kaplan to issue an order directing the release of the funds.
Carroll's lead attorney, Roberta Kaplan, framed the request as the logical end to a years-long court fight. "After four years of litigation across every level of the federal court system, it is time for this case to end," she wrote in filings, noting that a June 2023 agreement between the parties explicitly contemplated that the money would be released once the Supreme Court declined to hear Trump's appeal.
Trump's response hinges on a procedural delay. His lawyers filed a petition asking the Supreme Court to reconsider its decision, and they argue that releasing the funds before that petition is resolved would cause Trump "irreparable harm." They contend that Carroll's interpretation of the escrow agreement is incorrect and that the agreement does not permit her to collect while the rehearing petition remains pending.
The Trump legal team offered a striking rationale for why the delay matters: if the money is released, they argued, Carroll has stated publicly that she plans to give away all funds she collects from Trump, and once distributed to third parties, the money cannot be recovered. In contrast, they claimed Carroll faces only a temporary delay, which interest payments would compensate.
Trump is asking Judge Kaplan to either deny Carroll's request for a release order or postpone any decision on the matter.
Author James Rodriguez: "Trump is banking on procedural technicalities and the threat of irreversible disbursement, but the Supreme Court's rejection suggests his legal options are running thin."
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