Advice columnist E. Jean Carroll has asked a federal judge to compel US President Donald Trump to pay nearly $5.8 million, following a jury verdict that found he sexually abused her in the 1990s and later defamed her. The request comes after the US Supreme Court declined to hear Trump’s appeal against a 2023 civil jury verdict, effectively removing a key legal hurdle and prompting Carroll’s legal team to seek immediate enforcement of the payment.

Carroll’s lawyers filed the petition in Manhattan federal court on Tuesday, arguing that Trump is attempting to further delay payment despite exhausting his legal options in the case. The original jury award of $5 million has now increased to nearly $5.8 million with interest. The legal filing states that there is no justification for further postponement, especially after the Supreme Court’s refusal to intervene, and requests the court to order immediate disbursement of the amount.

The case stems from Carroll’s allegations that Trump sexually assaulted her in the mid-1990s inside a Manhattan department store dressing room following a chance encounter. She publicly detailed the incident in 2019 while Trump was serving as US president. Trump has consistently denied the allegations, stating he did not know Carroll and accusing her of political motivations and attempting to exploit the claims for publicity.

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Following the Supreme Court’s decision not to hear the appeal, Trump reiterated his criticism of the case on social media, describing it as part of what he called a “weaponization and lawfare” effort against him. His legal team reportedly contacted Carroll’s attorneys seeking to delay payment while considering a request for the Supreme Court to reconsider its decision. However, Carroll’s lawyers argued in their filing that repeated delays should no longer be permitted given the extensive litigation history and prior court rulings against Trump.

The legal dispute is separate from another defamation case in which Trump was ordered to pay $83 million in damages to Carroll after a January 2024 trial. In that case, a jury found Trump liable for defamatory statements made while he was president, with the court instructing jurors to accept earlier findings regarding liability and determine only the amount of damages. The ongoing legal battles continue to carry significant financial and political implications as further proceedings unfold in federal court.

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