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Fact check: What is the status of Donald Trump’s appeals in E. Jean Carroll’s defamation and sexual abuse verdicts as of 2024?
Executive Summary
As of the end of 2024, the federal appeals process in E. Jean Carroll’s lawsuits had produced a clear, adverse ruling for Donald Trump: the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed the trial jury’s finding that Trump sexually abused and defamed Carroll and upheld a $5 million award, while Trump continued to signal plans to press further appeals. The appeals decision rejected Trump’s arguments about evidentiary rulings and presidential immunity for the conduct at issue, leaving the district-court verdict intact and setting the stage for potential additional appeals to the full Second Circuit or the U.S. Supreme Court [1] [2] [3].
1. How the 2024 appeals ruling changed the case — why the $5 million award stuck
The Second Circuit’s 2024 panel decision affirmed the district court’s entry of judgment in favor of E. Jean Carroll and against Donald Trump, upholding the jury’s compensatory and punitive damages totaling $5 million and rejecting arguments that the trial judge erred in allowing certain evidence and testimony at trial. The appeals court concluded that the district court did not abuse its discretion in admitting testimony from other women who described past misconduct by Trump and did not err by allowing a 2005 recording of Trump’s comments about grabbing and kissing women without consent; those evidentiary rulings were central to the panel’s conclusion that any claimed errors did not affect Trump’s substantial rights [2] [4]. The panel’s ruling narrowed the immediate avenues for relief by keeping the jury’s factual findings and damages intact, while leaving procedural appeals still available.
2. What Trump argued on appeal and why the court rejected it
On appeal Trump raised multiple arguments, including challenges to evidentiary rulings, claims of trial error, and attempts to invoke presidential immunity for statements made about Carroll. The Second Circuit panel rejected these grounds, finding that the district court properly exercised discretion in admitting corroborative evidence and that Trump failed to show that any claimed error affected the outcome of the trial; the panel also declined to extend presidential immunity to the post-accusation statements at issue in Carroll’s defamation claim [2] [4]. The court’s treatment of immunity and evidence framed the legal posture by reinforcing that, in the panel’s view, the jury’s determinations and the district court’s procedural choices were legally sound, constraining immediate relief through normal appellate channels [1].
3. Where the case stood procedurally at the end of 2024 — more appeals to come
Following the Second Circuit’s 2024 decision, Trump’s legal team publicly indicated plans to continue appealing aspects of the Carroll litigation, signaling potential requests for rehearing en banc in the Second Circuit or petitions for certiorari to the Supreme Court. The appeals court’s opinion left open canonical appellate options — a full-court rehearing or Supreme Court review — but those remedies are discretionary and difficult to secure; meanwhile the affirmed judgment remained enforceable unless stayed by further court order. This posture created a situation where the judgment was legally final at the panel level but practically subject to further litigation tactics, including stay applications and collateral enforcement disputes that could prolong resolution [3] [4].
4. How later rulings and larger damage figures emerged in 2025 — context for the record
Subsequent reporting and later appellate rulings in 2025 reflected different judgments and larger awards tied to Carroll’s claims, including appellate upholding of an $83.3 million judgment tied to defamation damages in separate proceedings addressing Trump’s repeated social-media statements and public comments, with the Second Circuit finding the damages awards “fair and reasonable.” Those 2025 decisions affirmed substantial punitive damage components and again rejected presidential-immunity defenses for the defamatory statements, and they were reported as likely to be appealed further by Trump’s legal team [5] [6] [7]. While these later rulings postdate 2024, they clarify that the Carroll litigation unfolded in multiple parallel tracks producing varied monetary judgments and sustained appellate scrutiny.
5. What to watch next and competing perspectives
Going forward the principal issues to watch include whether Trump secures en banc rehearing in the Second Circuit or Supreme Court review, whether stay applications succeed, and how enforcement actions proceed against any affirmed money judgments. Advocates for Carroll view the appeals rulings as firm legal vindication of the jury’s findings and damages, while Trump’s defenders emphasize ongoing appellate remedies and contested law around immunity and admissibility as grounds for further relief; both sides have clear litigation incentives shaping their public framing. The combined record through late 2024 shows appellate courts upholding core trial findings while leaving open the prospect of additional litigation that could affect final collection and legal finality [1] [3] [4].