Trump Pays $5.6M to Carroll; $83.3M Verdict Still Looms
President Donald Trump has finally paid the $5.6 million defamation judgment to writer E. Jean Carroll, though a far larger $83.3 million liability remains unresolved as he continues to appeal.
A payment of $5,625,005.48 was disbursed to writer E. Jean Carroll and her legal team on Monday, according to court filings. The transfer concludes a multi-year appellate battle following a May 2023 jury verdict that found President Donald Trump liable for sexual assault and defamation. Federal Judge Lewis A. Kaplan authorized the payout last week after rejecting the president's latest effort to pause the ruling, noting Trump “has been stalling this case for years.”
The 2023 case was brought under New York’s Adult Survivors Act, which temporarily allowed civil claims where the statute of limitations had expired. While the jury found Trump liable for assault and defamation, they did not find him liable for rape. That specific verdict was later used as a binding finding in a separate, older defamation lawsuit Carroll filed in 2019.
That initial 2019 case went to trial in January 2024, with the jury only tasked with determining damages rather than liability. They awarded Carroll $83.3 million plus interest. That judgment remains entirely unpaid, and Trump is currently in the process of appealing it.
For an executive with an estimated net worth of $6.3 billion, the $5.6 million outflow is financially negligible. Forbes valued Trump's wealth at that figure on Tuesday morning, rendering the initial Carroll payment a rounding error against his total assets. The immediate cash impact on his real estate and branding portfolio is effectively zero.
The unresolved $83.3 million judgment presents a more substantial, though still manageable, contingent liability. Trump's lawyers have signaled they will ask the Supreme Court to hear that case after a federal appeals court refused to overturn the eight-figure award. No filing has yet been submitted to the high court regarding the larger penalty.
Even as the funds were transferred on Monday, the money must remain restricted in Carroll's account. Trump is still weighing a petition to ask the Supreme Court to reconsider its prior refusal to hear the $5.6 million case. Judge Kaplan characterized such reconsideration filings as “extremely rare birds.”
Carroll’s attorney Roberta Kaplan said she was “pleased to report that [Carroll] has received the damages payment the jury awarded her.” Trump's legal team struck a defiant tone, decried the litigation as a "hoax," and said the president "will keep winning against Liberal Lawfare."
For market professionals tracking the president's sprawling business interests, the Carroll payouts represent a rare instance of personal legal exposure directly impacting his liquid assets. While the current outflows do not threaten his solvency, the multi-year litigation highlights how persistent civil judgments can create financial friction for high-net-worth individuals.
