Donald Trump demands E. Jean Carroll return $5.6 million payout after losing final appeal

Donald Trump’s legal team has launched an unprecedented effort demanding that writer E. Jean Carroll hand back the $5.6 million she was recently paid following her high-profile sexual abuse and defamation victory against him.

The extraordinary demand comes just days after a Manhattan federal court officially released the multi-million dollar sum—which had been accumulating interest in a court-controlled escrow account—directly to Carroll after the US Supreme Court declined to hear Trump’s appeal.

However, despite the top court letting the civil verdict stand and Judge Lewis Kaplan ordering the immediate disbursement of the funds, Trump’s attorneys have filed new emergency motion papers arguing that Carroll must return every penny.

In the latest court filing, Trump’s defense team claimed that releasing the money was "premature and improper" because they had formally asked the Supreme Court to reconsider its decision to reject the case.

They argued that allowing Carroll to retain or spend the $5.6 million while their petition for a rehearing remains pending causes "irreparable harm" to Trump, demanding that the court order her to place the cash back into escrow until every single legal avenue has been fully exhausted.

Trump has demanded that E Jean Carroll return every penny of the court settlement (Leonardo Munoz / AFP / Getty Images)

The legal maneuver marks the latest chapter in a bitter years-long courtroom saga that began when Carroll publicly accused Trump of sexually assaulting her in the 1990s.

The 82-year-old former advice columnist, testified that what began as a friendly, flirtatious chance encounter with Trump in 1996 at a luxury Manhattan department store soon turned violent in a dressing room.

Trump, who chose not to attend that first 2023 trial, has consistently maintained his innocence, claiming he never knew Carroll, accusing her of trying to sell books, and famously stating in an interview that 'she’s not my type'.

However, while the court ultimately chose to dismiss her allegations that Trump had raped her, it did uphold claims for sexual abuse and defamation, prompting the award for $5 million in damages—a sum that grew to over $5.6 million with interest during Trump’s repeated attempts to delay payment.

Donald Trump was ordered to pay out the cash settlement after a jury ruled in Carroll's favour (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Carroll’s legal team has hit back hard against Trump’s demand to return the money, calling the motion a 'frivolous and desperate' attempt to rewrite rules that both parties had previously agreed to.

Lead attorney Roberta Kaplan pointed out that the original agreement explicitly stated the escrow funds would be disbursed upon a Supreme Court refusal to hear the case, arguing that Trump cannot simply demand a refund after losing at every level of the federal justice system.

While Carroll reportedly plans to place the funds into a retirement account, Trump’s lawyers insist they will continue fighting to claw back the money while also appealing a separate, massive $83.3 million defamation judgment awarded to Carroll by a second jury in 2024.