President Donald Trump has failed in his attempt to overturn an $83.3 million (£67 million) defamation verdict, with a federal appeals court ruling Monday that the jury’s damages award to columnist E Jean Carroll was “fair and reasonable.”
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan rejected Trump’s appeal of the January 2024 verdict, leaving the president on the hook for one of the largest defamation awards in American legal history. The three-judge panel found that Trump had “failed to identify any grounds that would warrant reconsidering” the case and that the district court had not erred in its rulings.
The decision represents the latest legal setback for Trump in his long-running battle with Carroll, who accused him of sexually assaulting her in a Bergdorf Goodman department store dressing room in the mid-1990s.
Court Rejects Presidential Immunity Claims
Trump’s legal team had argued the verdict should be overturned based on a July 2024 Supreme Court decision that expanded presidential immunity for official acts. However, the appeals court firmly rejected this argument, stating that Trump “has failed to identify any grounds that would warrant reconsidering our prior holding on presidential immunity.”
The panel, comprising two judges appointed by former President Joe Biden and one by former President Barack Obama, delivered an unsigned opinion affirming the lower court’s judgment. “We conclude that the district court did not err in any of the challenged rulings and that the jury’s damages awards are fair and reasonable,” the court stated.
Carroll’s attorney, Roberta Kaplan, hailed the decision as vindication for her client. “Throughout the trial, the jury had a front-row seat to Trump’s relentless campaign of malice, including his repeated defamation of Carroll at press conferences he held and in statements he posted on social media while the trial was ongoing,” she said.
The verdict shows “that even the richest and most powerful can be held responsible under our legal system,” Kaplan added.
Origins of the Case
The case stems from comments Trump made in 2019 whilst serving as president, after Carroll went public with allegations that he had sexually assaulted her in 1996. Trump vehemently denied the claims, calling them a “hoax” and a “con job,” and accused Carroll of fabricating the story to boost sales of her forthcoming book.
Carroll filed her first defamation lawsuit against Trump for these 2019 statements made from the White House. The case became entangled in complex legal proceedings over whether Trump was acting in his official capacity as president when he made the comments.
In January 2024, a federal jury in Manhattan deliberated for just three hours before awarding Carroll $7.3 million in emotional damages, $11 million for reputational harm, and a staggering $65 million in punitive damages, totalling $83.3 million.
Pattern of Legal Defeats
Monday’s ruling represents Trump’s second major defeat in cases brought by Carroll. The appeals court has also upheld a separate $5 million verdict from May 2023, in which a different jury found Trump liable for sexually abusing Carroll and defaming her through statements made after leaving office in 2022.
In that earlier case, the jury found Trump had committed sexual abuse and forcible touching, though they did not find he had raped Carroll as she had claimed. Judge Lewis Kaplan, who oversaw both trials, later clarified that the evidence “convincingly established” that Trump had “deliberately and forcibly penetrated Ms Carroll’s vagina with his fingers, causing immediate pain and long lasting emotional and psychological harm.”
Trump has appealed the $5 million verdict to the Supreme Court. In June 2025, the full 2nd Circuit bench voted 8-2 against reconsidering that decision, with only two Trump-appointed judges dissenting.
Financial Implications
To pursue his appeals, Trump has been required to post substantial bonds. For the $83.3 million verdict, he secured a $91.6 million bond from the Federal Insurance Company in March 2024, covering the judgment plus 10 percent interest.
The financial pressure on Trump extends beyond the Carroll cases. He faces a separate $454 million civil fraud penalty in New York for lying about his wealth in financial statements provided to banks, with interest adding approximately $112,000 daily to that judgment.
Trump’s legal team has warned he might need to sell properties to cover these mounting legal costs, though he has thus far managed to secure the necessary bonds to continue his appeals.
Justice Department Intervention Rejected
In a related development, the appeals court in June rejected an attempt by Trump’s Justice Department to substitute the federal government as the defendant in the case under the Westfall Act, which protects federal employees from certain lawsuits related to their official duties.
The Justice Department had argued that Trump’s 2019 denials of Carroll’s allegations, made from the White House South Lawn, fell within the scope of his presidential employment. However, the three-judge panel denied this request without detailed explanation, stating only that it would “issue an opinion detailing its reasoning in due course.”
This marks a return to the position Trump’s Justice Department took during his first term, which the Biden administration had subsequently abandoned in 2023.
Trump’s Response
A spokesperson for Trump’s legal team issued a defiant statement following the ruling: “The American People are supporting President Trump in historic numbers, and they demand an immediate end to the political weaponization of our justice system and a swift dismissal of all of the Witch Hunts, including the Democrat-funded Carroll Hoax, which will continue to be appealed.”
The statement added: “President Trump will keep winning against Liberal Lawfare, as he is focusing on his mission to Make America Great Again.”
The White House referred queries to Trump’s personal lawyers, who did not immediately respond to requests for additional comment.
Precedent-Setting Case
Legal experts note that the Carroll cases have set significant precedents for defamation law and presidential accountability. The verdicts demonstrate that even sitting presidents can face substantial civil liability for statements made about private citizens, regardless of whether those statements were made in an official capacity.
The case was made possible by New York’s Adult Survivors Act, which opened a one-year window for victims of sexual assault to file civil suits even after the statute of limitations had expired. Carroll filed her second lawsuit under this provision in November 2022.
Throughout both trials, Trump’s behaviour drew criticism from Judge Kaplan, who at one point threatened to remove the president from the courtroom after he made disparaging comments loud enough for jurors to hear. Trump attended portions of the January 2024 trial but did not testify substantively, limiting his testimony to brief statements.
What Happens Next
With the appeals court’s ruling, Trump’s options are narrowing. He can petition for the full 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals to reconsider the case en banc, though the court has already demonstrated reluctance to revisit Carroll’s victories. His ultimate recourse would be an appeal to the Supreme Court, where he is already seeking review of the $5 million verdict.
Meanwhile, Carroll, now 81, stands to collect the full judgment plus interest if Trump’s appeals are exhausted unsuccessfully. The money remains in court-controlled accounts pending the outcome of all appeals.
The case continues to reverberate politically as Trump navigates both his presidency and multiple legal challenges. The substantial verdicts against him in the Carroll cases represent some of the largest defamation awards in US history and underscore the legal risks of making false statements about private citizens, even for the most powerful political figures.
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