Trump’s Legal Team Files Requests Amid E. Jean Carroll Case

President Donald Trump’s attorneys have formally submitted requests in two different courts. On Wednesday, the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals was asked to suspend a recent ruling that allows E. Jean Carroll to collect a significant defamation judgment amounting to $83.3 million.

This action appears to be a strategic step before an anticipated appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, where Trump’s lawyers reportedly plan to argue that presidential immunity should have shielded him from Carroll’s ongoing lawsuit.

The latest request comes after a setback for Trump last week when the circuit court chose not to reconsider his mass immunity claim. The appeals court, in a split decision, denied Trump’s attempt to substitute the United States as a defendant under the Westfall Act.

In a motion filed on Wednesday, Trump’s legal team asserted that not suspending the proceedings would result in “irreparable harm,” suggesting that the president would face unnecessary burdens enforcing the judgment before key constitutional questions are resolved.

The forthcoming appeal to the Supreme Court will likely debate whether the president is eligible for absolute immunity, a topic that remains contentious among lower court judges. A previous ruling from a three-judge panel indicated that Trump had forfeited this defense by delaying too long in raising it. However, Justice Stephen Menashi dissented, labeling the majority’s stance as “erroneous” and a “clear miscarriage of justice.”

Additionally, Trump has a separate case pending before the Supreme Court regarding a $5 million judgment from 2023. In that situation, a New York jury found him liable for sexually assaulting Carroll in a department store fitting room in the 1990s, despite a lack of evidence presented by Carroll, who had also agreed with Trump’s statements and subsequent defamation claims.

This particular petition has been postponed several times for private discussions among the justices and is currently set to be reviewed on May 14th.

Roberta Kaplan, representing E. Jean Carroll, mentioned that her client is not against the suspension, but she’s eager for the case to conclude so that justice can finally be served.

The Supreme Court’s involvement could significantly influence the limits of administrative protection in civil cases. Following the High Court’s 2024 ruling in Trump vs. USA, which established broad immunity in criminal matters, Trump’s attorneys are now trying to extend those protections to civil defamation claims related to his first presidential term.