The US Supreme Court on August 17, 2026, declined to reconsider former President Donald Trump's appeal of a 2023 federal civil jury verdict holding him liable for sexually abusing and defaming writer E. Jean Carroll [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9]. The court issued an unsigned order with no explanation, listing the petition under rehearings denied, a standard procedure for Supreme Court rulings [1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9].

The $5 million civil damages award against Trump was upheld and finalized. Along with accrued post-judgment interest, Carroll received roughly $5.6 to $5.8 million by July 2026 [1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8]. The original jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation, but did not find him liable for rape [8]. Carroll alleges Trump sexually assaulted her in a Manhattan department store dressing room in the mid-1990s, around 1996 [1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 9].

Trump repeatedly denied Carroll's claims and called them a hoax and con job on social media in 2022 [1, 2, 4, 5, 8]. His legal team argued the trial was unfair and unsuccessfully petitioned the Supreme Court to hear the appeal or reconsider its June 2026 denial [1, 2, 8, 9]. A spokesperson for Trump’s lawyers said, "The American People stand with President Trump as they demand an immediate end to all of the Witch Hunts, including the Democrat-funded travesty of the Carroll Hoaxes" [4]. Another legal team statement called the Carroll cases a hoax and said Trump will keep winning against "Liberal Lawfare" [7].

In a separate 2024 federal case, Trump was ordered to pay $83.3 million for defamation related to different statements about Carroll made in 2019. That verdict is still pending appeal before the Supreme Court [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9]. Trump and the US Justice Department argue presidential immunity protects him from liability for those 2019 defamation statements [3, 5, 8, 9].

Carroll is a former advice columnist and TV host who publicly accused Trump of rape in 2019, which he denies [3, 5, 8].

Roberta Kaplan, Carroll’s attorney, said, "We are pleased that the United States Supreme Court has declined again to hear this case. As a result, the jury's unanimous verdict that Donald Trump sexually assaulted and then defamed E. Jean Carroll is now final and cannot be challenged in any court" [1].