Trump Pays E. Jean Carroll $5.6 Million After Courts Reject Delay Bids

Q: With a new perjury probe now underway, could the $5.62 million payment to E. Jean Carroll be clawed back?

Yes, but only in a narrow and difficult scenario. Trump’s $5.62 million payment was made to satisfy a final civil judgment that survived appeal, including a failed bid to get Supreme Court review. That means the money is no longer just being held by the court; it has been disbursed under a valid judgment. A mere perjury investigation would not by itself undo that payment. For the money to be clawed back, investigators or Trump’s lawyers would likely need to prove something much stronger: that material false testimony or fraud tainted the verdict in a way serious enough for a court to reopen or vacate the judgment. In practice, that usually requires more than inconsistencies or a new criminal probe. Courts are generally reluctant to overturn a jury verdict that has already been affirmed on appeal unless there is compelling new evidence of fraud on the court. Even if a perjury case were brought, a criminal investigation is separate from the civil judgment. A perjury charge or even a conviction would not automatically return the money. Trump would still need to go back to civil court and win extraordinary post-judgment relief, then pursue recovery of the funds. So the realistic answer is that a clawback is legally possible in theory, but unlikely unless the probe produces strong, material evidence that directly undermines the basis of the 2023 verdict.

3 articles · Updated · Forbes · Jul 14

$5,625,005.48 was disbursed Monday to E. Jean Carroll and her lawyers after a judge and appeals court refused Trump's latest attempts to postpone payment.
The money covers a 2023 jury award of $5 million plus interest after jurors found Trump liable for sexually assaulting Carroll in the 1990s and defaming her.
Judge Lewis Kaplan said Trump had been stalling the case for years; the funds must remain in Carroll's account while Trump seeks Supreme Court reconsideration, a step the judge called rarely successful.
A separate $83.3 million defamation judgment against Trump in Carroll's other case remains unpaid and is still being appealed.