Federal appeals court denies Trump’s challenge to $5M civil verdict in E. Jean Carroll case, two judges dissent.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit on Friday rejected President Donald Trump’s attempt to overturn a civil verdict that held him liable for sexually abusing and defaming former Elle columnist E. Jean Carroll. The decision marks a significant legal setback for Trump in the high-profile case stemming from decades-old allegations.

The full appellate panel declined to rehear Trump’s arguments, effectively upholding a jury’s decision that awarded Carroll $5 million in damages. Trump may now take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court, which represents his final avenue for appeal in the matter.

Carroll had filed the lawsuit in 2022, alleging that Trump assaulted her during a brief encounter in a department store dressing room in the 1990s. While the jury found that Trump did not rape Carroll, it concluded that he was liable for sexual abuse and defamation based on his public denials and disparaging remarks following her allegations.

In his appeal, Trump’s legal team objected to key pieces of evidence presented during the trial, including the widely circulated Access Hollywood tape from 2016 in which Trump made lewd comments about women. Trump’s lawyers argued that the tape constituted inadmissible “propensity evidence”—material introduced to suggest a likelihood of certain behavior based on prior conduct.

Dissent Cites Legal Precedent Concerns

Two appellate judges, both appointed by Trump, issued a dissenting opinion, expressing concern that the court’s ruling could set a troubling precedent. They wrote that the Access Hollywood tape lacked direct relevance to Carroll’s specific claims and warned against its broader legal implications.

“If the panel opinion remains a precedent of our court, a future plaintiff or the government will be able to introduce evidence of prior conduct in which a defendant went on a mundane outing and sometime thereafter made a sexual advance,” the judges wrote.

The dissenting judges maintained that the tape served more to prejudice the jury than to inform it, potentially expanding the range of acceptable evidence in future civil cases involving similar allegations.

Additional Lawsuit and Larger Verdict

Carroll initially made her allegations public in a 2019 book, prompting Trump to deny her claims repeatedly. She subsequently filed two defamation lawsuits. The appellate ruling on Friday applies to the first case, which focused on both the alleged incident and Trump’s comments afterward.

The second lawsuit, filed shortly after her book’s publication, centered on Trump’s statements dismissing Carroll’s account as a fabrication aimed at boosting book sales. A jury in that case awarded Carroll $83 million in January, a verdict that Trump is also appealing.

Trump has continued to deny all accusations, asserting that he never met Carroll and that her claims were politically motivated. His legal team has signaled plans to pursue all available avenues to reverse the judgments.

With the 2nd Circuit’s decision now on record, attention turns to whether the Supreme Court will agree to hear the case. If not, the $5 million judgment stands, solidifying a major legal and reputational blow for the sitting president.