Title: E. Jean Carroll’s Lawyers Oppose Donald Trump’s Request for Extension to Satisfy $83.3 Million Defamation Judgment
E. Jean Carroll, the plaintiff in a defamation case against former President Donald Trump, urged the judge not to grant Trump additional time to satisfy the judgment of $83.3 million, stating that Trump is an “untrustworthy borrower.”
Trump requested more time from the judge overseeing the defamation case on February 11 to either post a bond to appeal or pay a lesser amount ranging between $24 million and $40 million. However, Carroll’s legal team disagreed, stating that Trump’s request was based on “trust me.”
Carroll’s attorneys wrote in a court filing on February 10: “He doesn’t offer any information about his finances or the nature and location of his assets. He doesn’t specify what percentage of his assets are liquid or explain how Carroll might go about collecting. He doesn’t even acknowledge the risks that now accompany his financial situation, from a half-billion-Dollar judgment obtained by the New York Attorney General to the 91 felony charges that might end his career as a businessman permanently.”
The attorneys further emphasized Trump’s history of non-payment to lenders and attorneys, stating that he was asking the court for a “paper napkin” signed by an individual known for financial untrustworthiness.
Trump’s lawyers have until February 13 to respond before the judge issues a decision. The judge had given Trump 30 days after making the jury verdict official on February 8 to post a bond for appealing the case. According to the current schedule, he would need to post the bond in around two weeks.
Since the verdict, Trump’s financial situation has become increasingly complex. The judge overseeing the New York Attorney General’s civil fraud case entered a $454 million judgment against Trump on February 3. Trump offered to post $100 million in that case and requested an appeals court judge to delay the bond’s timing. The judge denied his motion for a stay on February 9.
Carroll’s lawyers pointed out that Trump’s unclear finances and the potential implications of his swirling legal problems could impact his ability to satisfy the defamation judgment. They wrote: “If Trump is convicted of even a subset of the 91 felony charges lodged against him, the implications for his ability to satisfy the judgment here could be significant. And even prior to a conviction, Trump’s ‘brand,’ purportedly his most valuable asset, though not one that can easily be utilized to satisfy a civil judgment, may suffer as a result of the various legal proceedings in which he is enmeshed.”
They also highlighted that Trump’s position might change by the time post-trial motions are fully resolved, as he could potentially become President of the United States, a convicted criminal serving time in prison, or an elderly individual whose estate might complicate collection efforts.
The $83.3 million verdict marked the second time a jury had awarded Carroll millions of dollars in damages from Trump for defamatory statements that disparaged her and denied her rape allegations. In 2021, a jury had awarded her $5 million in damages, finding Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation after he denied Carroll’s rape allegation, stated she wasn’t his type, and suggested she had made up the story to sell her book. In the current case, a jury found Carroll should receive $83.3 million in damages to repair her reputation, compensate her, and punish Trump.
