New York, United States. US President Donald Trump has paid $5.6 million to author E. Jean Carroll following a civil trial in which a jury found him liable for sexual assault and defamation, according to court documents released on Tuesday.
Carroll’s lawyer, Roberta Kaplan, confirmed that the jury-awarded damages from the May 2023 verdict had been paid.
Payment follows Supreme Court decision
Kaplan said Carroll had received the damages awarded by the jury.
The payment followed a late-June decision by the US Supreme Court to reject Trump’s appeal, leaving the original ruling in place. A federal judge subsequently ordered the payment.
Allegations and verdict
Carroll, 82, a former journalist and Elle magazine columnist, accused Trump of sexually assaulting her in a fitting room at a New York department store in 1996. She publicly made the allegation in 2019 after publishing a book detailing her claim.
Trump denied the allegation, describing Carroll’s claims as false and calling the case a “set-up case.” He also referred to Carroll as “corrupt.”
The payment relates to the first civil case, in which the jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation but did not find him liable for rape under the legal definition used in the trial.
Separate defamation case
In a separate defamation case brought by Carroll, a jury ordered Trump to pay $83.3 million in damages. An appeals court upheld that decision, although the payment remains subject to further legal proceedings if the Supreme Court agrees to review the case.
Trump has continued to deny wrongdoing and criticised the legal cases brought against him. The rulings concern civil liability and do not constitute criminal convictions.