Here’s what happened.
President Donald Trump received disappointing news from the Supreme Court on Monday as the justices rejected his latest attempt to challenge a $5 million civil judgment involving writer E. Jean Carroll.
The decision leaves the 2023 verdict intact and effectively closes the door on Trump’s appeal in that particular case.
But the president’s larger legal battle with Carroll is far from finished.
The Supreme Court is still considering whether to hear a separate Trump appeal involving an $83.3 million judgment—and that case raises a major question surrounding presidential immunity.
Supreme Court Turns Trump Away Again
Trump had asked the Supreme Court to reconsider its earlier decision not to hear his appeal of the $5 million judgment.
On Monday, the justices denied that request.
The Supreme Court rarely grants requests to reconsider a denial, making Trump’s latest effort a difficult legal hurdle from the beginning.
Trump had already paid approximately $5.63 million, representing the original judgment plus interest, after the Supreme Court initially declined to review the case in June.
Carroll’s attorney, Roberta Kaplan, celebrated Monday’s decision and said the verdict is now final.
Trump, meanwhile, has consistently denied Carroll’s allegations and has challenged the fairness and legal basis of the cases against him.
What The Jury Actually Decided
The legal dispute traces back to allegations Carroll publicly made in 2019.
Carroll, a former Elle advice columnist, alleged that Trump attacked her in a dressing room at Manhattan’s Bergdorf Goodman department store during the 1990s.
Trump has repeatedly denied her account.
The case resulting in the $5 million judgment concerned both Carroll’s underlying allegation and statements Trump made in 2022 while denying it.
A civil jury in 2023 found Trump liable for abuse and defamation.
Importantly, the jury did not find Trump liable for rape under the specific claim it considered.
The distinction is significant when describing what the jury actually concluded.
Trump’s Bigger $83.3 Million Fight Isn’t Over
Although Monday’s decision ends Trump’s Supreme Court challenge to the $5 million judgment, another case could carry much larger consequences.
Trump is separately challenging an $83.3 million defamation award involving comments he made about Carroll in 2019 while serving his first term as president.
That case presents a different legal question.
Trump’s attorneys argue that presidential immunity should protect him from liability connected to statements made while he occupied the White House.
They also contend that lower courts improperly concluded that Trump had forfeited his opportunity to rely on that defense.
The Supreme Court has not yet decided whether it will hear that appeal.
That means one of the most important parts of Trump’s legal fight remains unresolved.
Presidential Immunity Could Become Key Issue
Trump’s attorneys have pointed to broader protections surrounding presidential immunity as they continue fighting the larger judgment.
In a landmark 2024 ruling, the Supreme Court held that former presidents receive significant immunity from criminal prosecution for official presidential acts, including absolute immunity for actions within their core constitutional authority.
There is an important difference, however.
The Carroll lawsuits are civil cases, not criminal prosecutions.
That leaves the courts with a separate question over whether presidential immunity can protect Trump from civil liability stemming from statements made while he was serving as president.
If the Supreme Court agrees to hear the $83.3 million case, that issue could take center stage.
Years-Long Legal Battle Continues
Carroll first publicly accused Trump in 2019 after describing the alleged encounter in her memoir.
Trump strongly denied the allegation and has maintained that Carroll’s account is false.
Those denials eventually became central to the defamation litigation between the two.
The legal fight has now stretched across Trump’s political comeback and return to the White House.
Monday’s Supreme Court decision means Trump has exhausted his challenge to the smaller $5 million judgment.
But financially, the much bigger question remains unresolved.
The outstanding $83.3 million judgment is more than 16 times larger than the verdict involved in Monday’s decision.
What Happens Next?
Attention now shifts to the Supreme Court’s handling of Trump’s separate appeal.
The justices are expected to consider that matter later this year.
If they decline to hear it, Trump would lose another opportunity at the nation’s highest court to challenge the massive judgment.
If they agree to take the case, however, Trump’s attorneys would have an opportunity to make their presidential-immunity argument directly before the justices.
So while Monday brought a definite legal defeat for Trump in one case, his most expensive Supreme Court fight involving Carroll is still alive.
And with more than $83 million at stake, what the justices decide to do next could prove considerably more consequential.