Writer E. Jean Carroll arrives at the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan, New York. A federal appeals court has upheld an $83.3 million defamation verdict in her favor against former President Donald Trump.
Adam Gray | Reuters
A federal appeals court on Monday rejected Donald Trump’s bid to overturn the $83.3 million jury verdict for his defamation of writer E. Jean Carroll.
In its decision, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld the verdict, which Trump’s lawyers had argued was excessive. The appeal also claimed the verdict was invalid under a recent Supreme Court decision that expanded the scope of presidential immunity.
The appellate court disagreed, holding that Trump “has failed to identify any grounds that would warrant reconsidering our prior holding on presidential immunity.” The panel also found that the lower court “did not err in any of the challenged rulings and that the jury’s damages awards are fair and reasonable.”
This ruling addresses one of two civil cases brought by Carroll against Trump. Both lawsuits were based on statements Trump made denying Carroll’s accusation that he raped her in the mid-1990s in the Bergdorf Goodman department store in Manhattan.
In a separate, earlier case, a jury awarded Carroll $5 million after finding Trump liable for sexual assault and defamation. Trump’s legal team has signaled it will ask the Supreme Court to overturn that verdict.
The White House referred inquiries to Trump’s personal lawyers, who did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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