Supreme Court to Consider Trump's Rehearing Request in E. Jean Carroll Case

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Supreme Court has distributed former President Donald Trump's petition for reconsideration regarding a $5 million verdict in a civil lawsuit brought by E. Jean Carroll. This action means justices could review Trump's request as early as August 17, when the court plans to release its next set of summer orders.

Carroll initiated the lawsuit in a New York federal court in 2022. She alleged that Trump sexually assaulted her in a Manhattan department store in 1996. Carroll also claimed Trump defamed her in 2022 following her public statements about the alleged assault. A jury subsequently awarded Carroll $5 million, a decision the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit later upheld.

Trump appealed to the Supreme Court last fall. He argued that the trial court should not have permitted Carroll's lawyers to introduce testimony from other women who also accused Trump of assault. Trump also contested the inclusion of the 2005 "Access Hollywood" tape in which he discussed women.

Carroll, in her brief urging the Supreme Court to reject Trump's petition, stated that even if the court had excluded the contested evidence, it would not have altered the verdict due to the strength of her case.

Trump's initial petition for review was scheduled for the justices' conference on February 20, 2026. The court repeatedly rescheduled the review, ultimately considering it at the June 25 conference and denying it on June 29. Trump then filed his petition for rehearing on July 8. The Supreme Court has not granted a petition to reconsider its denial of review since 2018.