The United States Supreme Court has once again denied President Donald Trump’s appeal regarding a $5-million US verdict in favor of E. Jean Carroll, a former magazine columnist, who accused him of sexual abuse and defamation. Trump’s lawyers argued that the trial was unfair, but the justices refused to reconsider their previous decision in June, which upheld the jury verdict from 2023.

In addition to this case, the Supreme Court is also considering Trump’s appeal of an $83.3-million US jury verdict for defaming Carroll in 2019 during his presidency. Trump’s legal team claims that presidential immunity should protect him from Carroll’s accusations and that lower courts were wrong to rule otherwise.

The legal battle between Trump and Carroll began in 2019 when Carroll alleged that Trump had raped her in the 1990s. Trump denied the claims, calling them a “hoax” and a “con job.” The jury in the $5-million US verdict case found that Trump had sexually abused and defamed Carroll but did not find evidence to support the rape allegation.

After the Supreme Court’s refusal to hear Trump’s appeal, Carroll received nearly $5.63 million US from Trump, including the original $5-million US verdict plus interest. Trump’s lawyers are now focusing on the issue of presidential immunity, which could impact both the 2023 and 2024 jury verdicts. The Supreme Court previously ruled in a landmark 2024 decision that former presidents have full immunity from criminal prosecution for actions taken during their time in office, though the Carroll cases are civil lawsuits.