Trump and the Justice Department filed on July 29, 2026, asking the Supreme Court to review Carroll's $83 million verdict.
Why it matters: The filing could determine whether one of Trump's biggest civil liabilities stands. It also puts presidential immunity and the Justice Department's role in defending presidential conduct before the Court again.
- The petition was filed July 29, 2026, and asks the Supreme Court to review the $83 million award.
- Trump and DOJ argue he cannot be sued over remarks made while he was president.
- The filing also invokes the Westfall Act, which can shield federal employees from certain lawsuits tied to job-related conduct.
- Lower courts rejected Trump's efforts to overturn the January 2024 Manhattan jury verdict.
President Donald Trump and the Justice Department are asking the Supreme Court to review the $83 million defamation verdict that E. Jean Carroll won in Manhattan federal court.
The July 29 filing says Trump cannot be held liable for remarks he made while serving as president. Federal lawyers also argue that the case turns on the Westfall Act, which can shield federal employees from certain lawsuits over conduct tied to their jobs.
The Justice Department's involvement matters because it is not just defending Trump as an individual. It is also pressing an argument that presidential statements made in office should be treated as protected federal conduct.
In the filing, DOJ wrote that "[a]bsent this Court’s intervention, the sitting President is facing nearly a hundred million dollars of personal liability for conduct that was well within the scope of his federal office."
Trump's lawyers said the lower court proceedings were "engaged in procedural contortions" and argued the case "cries out for this Court’s review in this unprecedented case." They also called the verdict "grossly excessive."
The award stems from a Manhattan jury verdict in January 2024. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Trump's efforts to overturn it. For the filing itself, see the Supreme Court docket materials here, and for background on the lower-court fight, see the AP's account here.
Carroll testified that Trump sexually assaulted her in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room in 1996. She later sued after Trump denied the allegation and attacked her credibility in public remarks after her 2019 memoir.
This is the second time Trump has asked the Supreme Court to wipe out a Carroll jury award. In June 2026, the Court declined to hear his appeal of a separate $5 million verdict.
By the numbers
- $83 million - Defamation award Trump is asking the Supreme Court to review.
- July 29, 2026 - Date Trump and DOJ filed their petition.
- $5 million - Separate Carroll verdict the Supreme Court declined to hear in June 2026.
Yes, but: The Court has not said whether it will take the case, and the filing still faces the justices' usual certiorari threshold.
What's next: The Supreme Court will decide whether to grant review of the $83 million verdict.