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Trump asks Supreme Court to overturn $83.3 million award in E. Jean Carroll defamation case
NBC News • • nation
Key Points:
- President Donald Trump has asked the Supreme Court to intervene in his defamation case with writer E. Jean Carroll, seeking to avoid paying an $83.3 million jury award by claiming presidential immunity.
- Trump's lawyers argue this is the first case where a president has been held liable for official conduct and warn that upholding the ruling could harm future presidents and the presidency itself.
- They contend that under the Westfall Act, Trump should be replaced by the U.S. government as the defendant, which would nullify the defamation claim since the government cannot be sued for defamation.
- The appeals court has rejected Trump's claims of presidential immunity, but his lawyers cite a recent Supreme Court decision supporting immunity for most presidential communications to challenge those rulings.
- The Supreme Court recently denied Trump's request to review a separate defamation case filed by Carroll related to sexual abuse allegations and post-office statements, which resulted in a $5 million award against Trump.
