Signs Donald Trump Is Scrambling To Pay E. Jean Carroll $83.3 Million
The following contains mention of sexual assault
Donald Trump owes a lot of money after his intense legal battles against E. Jean Carroll found him guilty of defamation toward the former magazine columnist, and he's fighting the verdict tooth and nail. The real estate mogul was ordered to pay Carroll $83.3 million, CNN reported. Her win came a year after she received $5 million in damages in Trump's sexual assault and defamation trial. While $5 million may be a drop in the bucket for Trump, $83.3 million is a lot more than he can let go of without it hurting his bank account.
"I think he's gonna have to pay — and whether it requires him to sell something or to put a lien on something to get a loan, that's his problem, not ours," Carroll's lawyer Roberta Kaplan told CNN. She went on to add, "Judge [Lewis] Kaplan, through judgment-enforcement mechanisms, will make sure that he pays. And indeed, even to take the appeal, he's going to have to at least put up a bond of 20% of the amount." Trump does have to pay up, but it looks like he's doing his best not to lose a huge chunk of change.
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
Donald Trump is trying to delay payment
Moments after the jury decided Donald Trump was to pay E. Jean Carroll $83.3 million, he vowed to appeal the verdict. At the end of February, his lawyers requested to postpone the due date of his $83.3 million bond until a month after Judge Kaplan makes a decision on Trump's post-trial motions, per ABC News. Otherwise, his team asked the courts to reduce his bond to $24.475 million. However, Judge Kaplan replied, "The Court declines to grant any stay, much less an unsecured stay, without first having afforded plaintiff a meaningful opportunity to be heard." Carroll was given until February 29 to respond.
Carroll's lawyers filed a motion asking the courts to deny Trump's request, stating that he has no good reason to delay the payment. "The reasoning Trump offers in seeking this extraordinary relief boils down to nothing more than 'trust me'. He doesn't offer any information about his finances or the nature and location of his assets. He doesn't specify what percentage of his assets are liquid or explain how Carroll might go about collecting," stated the legal filings obtained by The Guardian. With the due date of March 8 looming dangerously close, Trump is grasping at all straws, and he has asked the courts for a new trial against Carroll.
Donald Trump is not going pay up without a fight
Days before he has to cough up major dough, Donald Trump's legal team asked the courts for a new trial and a deduction in the $83.3 million he owes E. Jean Carroll, NBC reported. "This Court's erroneous decision to dramatically limit the scope of President Trump's testimony almost certainly influenced the jury's verdict, and thus a new trial is warranted," the motion stated. Trump's lawyers also argued that the amount awarded to Carroll was "disproportionately high" and asked to reduce the amount to $36.6 million or less.
Trump's camp has again asked Judge Kaplan to delay the multi-million dollar payout to Carroll, per ABC News. "Remitting the $7.3 million award and the $65 million punitive award, as discussed above, would reduce the bond amount to $24.475 million, which would be more than sufficient to secure any minimal risk to Plaintiff," Trump's lawyers wrote. They also argued that Carroll's lawyers' worry that Trump can't pay $83.3 million in damages contradicted their evidence of his high net worth to procure more money in damages from him. Meanwhile, Trump also owes $454 million in a civil fraud judgment, which he has also appealed, so one could argue that he has bigger fish to fry.