A federal judge in Manhattan has cleared the way for E Jean Carroll to collect the $5.8 million that Donald Trump owes her following her 2023 civil victory. Judge Lewis Kaplan's order directs the release of funds that have been sitting in a court-controlled account since Trump deposited them roughly six weeks after losing the case.
The money, originally a $5 million jury award plus 11% interest accrued over time, has been locked in the court's registry investment system, or Cris, a type of judicial escrow that keeps funds secure during the appeals process. Kaplan's decision comes after the U.S. Supreme Court declined on June 29 to hear Trump's appeal of the underlying verdict.
Carroll, a former Elle magazine writer, won her first trial against Trump in 2023 when jurors found he sexually abused her and then defamed her with false and inflammatory denials. Trump maintained his innocence throughout the case and appealed the outcome multiple times across federal courts, each time losing at every level.
The agreement between Trump's legal team and Carroll's lawyers stipulated that funds deposited into Cris could be released upon certain milestones, including a Supreme Court refusal to take the case. That trigger was pulled when the justices declined to review Trump's petition.
Trump's legal team fought the release, arguing that even though they requested the Supreme Court reconsider their initial denial, the money should remain frozen pending any hypothetical rehearing. They claimed that if Carroll received the funds and then the Supreme Court later ruled in Trump's favor, recovery would be impossible.
They also pointed out that Carroll has stated she plans to donate collected funds to charity, making recoupment even less realistic. Carroll's legal team, led by prominent attorney Roberta Kaplan, pushed back hard, filing a June 30 motion describing the case as effectively finished.
"After four years of litigation across every level of the federal court system, it is time for this case to end," Kaplan wrote, adding that Trump's latest maneuvers amounted to delay tactics at the end of a very long road. She argued that the language of the parties' agreement was clear and Trump had exhausted his legitimate review options.
Judge Kaplan agreed and rejected Trump's request for more time, noting that his new lawyer's unfamiliarity with the case facts did not justify further postponement.
Legal experts say Trump's remaining options are nearly nonexistent. He could ask Judge Kaplan for a stay of her order, though such requests are rarely granted once a decision is final. He could petition the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit for a stay, but legal observers consider this a long shot.
The Supreme Court remains his last theoretical avenue, either through a stay request or a petition for reconsideration of their initial denial. But legal veterans told news outlets that the Supreme Court almost never grants reconsideration petitions and that Trump's prospects are extremely dim.
A separate $83.3 million defamation judgment against Trump from a 2024 trial in the same court is being handled differently. For that award, Trump secured a bond rather than depositing cash into Cris, meaning the mechanics of collection could prove more complex and lengthy.
Both cases stem from Carroll's 2019 book and a New York magazine article that excerpted it, in which she alleged Trump sexually assaulted her in the 1990s. Trump publicly denied knowing her and called her accusations false, which led to her defamation lawsuits.
Author James Rodriguez: "Trump's drawn-out legal defense appears to have finally hit a wall, and with the Supreme Court having spoken, there's little left but the clock on payment ticking down."
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