Writer E. Jean Carroll has received over $5.6 million awarded by a jury in her sexual abuse and defamation case against former President Donald Trump. This sum includes the original $5 million jury award plus interest, as confirmed by court records and her attorneys.
The funds had been held in escrow since the 2023 verdict and were released on Monday after the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the civil verdict to stand. Trump’s lawyers had unsuccessfully attempted to block the payment. Judge Lewis A. Kaplan then authorized the release of the money, which Carroll’s lawyer, Roberta Kaplan, confirmed she has now received.
Carroll’s lawyers plan to place the money into a retirement account. Meanwhile, Trump’s legal team continues to appeal the decision, seeking to reverse the payment. They have also filed another appeal concerning $83 million in defamation compensation awarded to Carroll by a separate jury in 2024.
The jury ruled that Trump assaulted Carroll in a New York department store dressing room in 1996 and subsequently defamed her with public statements after she recounted the incident in a 2019 memoir. Despite these findings, Trump has consistently denied the allegations, claiming nothing inappropriate occurred and that Carroll fabricated the story to damage his reputation.
Carroll pursued legal action when New York revised its laws, allowing survivors of sexual abuse to file lawsuits for past incidents. Although Trump did not attend the trial, Carroll testified about their initial friendly encounter, which turned hostile.
Legal efforts continue as Trump’s legal representatives remain determined to challenge the jury’s decisions.