The US Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear President Donald Trump’s appeal seeking to overturn a jury verdict that found him liable for sexually abusing writer E. Jean Carroll and defaming her. The decision leaves in place the $5 million award granted to Carroll in 2023.
In a brief order without explanation, the Supreme Court refused to take up Trump’s appeal, effectively upholding the jury’s findings.
Trump’s legal team had argued that the trial was unfair because the judge allowed testimony from two other women who had also accused Trump of sexual abuse decades ago. Trump has denied all three allegations.
His lawyers also claimed the trial judge violated federal evidence rules and argued that the case interfered with Trump’s responsibilities as president, even though the verdict was delivered before his return to the White House.
Attorney Justin D. Smith, who represented Trump in the case and has since been nominated by him for an appeals court judgeship, argued that the treatment of the president in the case should not be allowed to stand.
Carroll defended trial court’s decisions
Carroll’s lawyers urged the Supreme Court to reject the appeal, saying the testimony from the two other women was relevant because their allegations were similar to Carroll’s.
They also argued that US District Judge Lewis Kaplan’s evidentiary rulings were consistent with legal standards followed by courts across the country.
Jury found Trump liable in 2023
During the 2023 trial, Carroll, a longtime advice columnist and former television host, testified that Trump sexually assaulted her in a dressing room at the Bergdorf Goodman department store in Manhattan in the spring of 1996 after what began as a friendly encounter.
The jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse and for defaming Carroll after he denied her allegations in 2022.
Separate defamation appeal continues
In a separate trial, another jury awarded Carroll an additional $83.3 million in damages for defamation. Trump has appealed that verdict, although the case has not yet reached the Supreme Court.
The latest order leaves the original $5 million verdict intact while Trump continues to challenge the larger defamation award and faces other ongoing legal battles.
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