TRUMP SEEKS TO DELAY $5.8M PAYMENT TO E JEAN CARROLL

Donald Trump has asked a Manhattan federal court judge not to order the release of more than $5.8m that he owes to E Jean Carroll following her successful 2023 civil trial against him for sexual abuse and defamation. The funds, which include a jury award plus 11% interest, have been held in a court-controlled account since Trump deposited them approximately six weeks after Carroll's victory. Trump has denied all wrongdoing. The request follows the United States Supreme Court's decision on 29 June not to review Trump's appeal of the case.

Carroll's legal team, led by Roberta Kaplan, asked Judge Lewis Kaplan to issue an order releasing the funds, citing a June 2023 agreement between the parties that specified money would be released upon definitive legal developments such as the Supreme Court's refusal to hear the appeal. Trump's legal team contests this interpretation, arguing that the agreement does not permit payment while a rehearing petition remains unresolved. Trump's lawyers contend that releasing the funds before the rehearing petition is resolved would cause the president "irreparable harm" whilst only causing Carroll "temporary delay" fully compensable by interest.

Trump's legal team filed a rehearing petition with the Supreme Court on 6 July, which they say must be resolved before payment proceeds. Kaplan stated in court filings that after four years of litigation across the federal court system, the case should conclude. The outcome depends on Judge Lewis Kaplan's decision regarding whether the agreement requires immediate release of the funds or permits further delay pending the rehearing petition's resolution.