Federal Court Rejects Trump Appeal in $83 Million Carroll Verdict as Losses Mount

A federal appeals court’s refusal to rehear Donald Trump’s challenge to E. Jean Carroll’s $83.3 million defamation award adds to a growing record of courtroom defeats tied to abuse allegations and Carroll’s lawsuits.

The ruling leaves one of the largest defamation judgments against a U.S. political figure intact, barring Supreme Court intervention. It follows the earlier $5 million verdict in which a jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation.

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Beyond the immediate legal blow, the decision sharpens a broader narrative around repeated losses in abuse-related cases and failed attempts to overturn them.

For Trump, the stakes are now larger than one appeal. The ruling reinforces how juries and courts have consistently rejected major parts of his defense strategy.

With the presidential campaign underway, the legal fallout is increasingly colliding with political risk — turning what began as a civil dispute into a continuing accountability story.