A federal judge has authorised disbursement of $5.8 million to writer E. Jean Carroll following the Supreme Court's rejection of Donald Trump's appeal in a case where a jury found him liable for sexual abuse and defamation. The funds, comprising a $5 million judgment and accrued interest from a 2023 trial, had been held in a court-controlled escrow account for more than three years whilst Trump's legal team sought to delay payment through an appeal petition.

Judge Lewis Kaplan issued the order after noting Trump had engaged in prolonged litigation delays throughout the case. A jury had determined Trump was liable for sexually abusing Carroll in a Manhattan department store in 1996 and for subsequently defaming her by denying the allegations. Beyond this case, Carroll secured a separate $83.3 million judgment in a related defamation proceeding, which Trump's legal team continues to challenge before the Supreme Court.