President Donald Trump must pay New York Columnist E. Jean Carroll over $5 million after a U.S. federal appeals court rejected the president’s emergency order to block the payment.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit’s decision comes after repeated efforts by President Trump to overturn a 2023 Manhattan jury ruling against him, which found him liable for sexual abuse and defamation.
Judge Eunice C. Lee of the 2nd Circuit threw out the president’s “emergency basis” request for an “immediate administrative stay” of Judge Lewis Kaplan’s ruling directing the disbursement of the $5.8 million held in escrow.
Judge Orders Trump To Pay Following SCOTUS Rejection
Judge Kaplan ruled in favor of Carroll, arguing that President Trump “has been stalling this case for years” despite the jury’s unanimous conclusion.
“The judgment on that verdict has been upheld on appeal. En banc rehearing has been denied. The Supreme Court has denied certiorari without dissent,” Kaplan affirmed. “It’s time for him to ‘do equity’ and pay the judgment.”
Trump Requests High Court To Reconsider Its Decision
The president’s legal team had filed the most recent appeal less than an hour after Judge Kaplan’s order. In that appeal, they argued that Judge Kaplan’s ruling should not take effect because of the president’s request that the U.S. Supreme Court reconsider its decision.
On June 29, 2026, the High Court refused to hear President Trump’s appeal, ultimately upholding the 2023 verdict.
Carroll Pressures Trump Following SCOTUS' Decision
Just a day after the Supreme Court’s decision, Carroll requested Judge Kaplan to direct President Trump to pay the judgment she was awarded in the 2023 case.
According to MS Now, President Trump has reportedly appealed the court case seven times and has requested five administrative stays from the court.
The president’s petition for rehearing from the High Court was “not accepted for filing” before Judge Kaplan and Lee’s recent orders. A corrected petition was filed the morning before Judge Lee’s rejection.
