President Donald Trump filed a motion late Tuesday in the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals seeking to stay enforcement of an $83.3 million defamation judgment awarded to writer E. Jean Carroll. The request aims to halt proceedings to execute the judgment until the Supreme Court resolves a planned petition for certiorari.

Trump's lawyers argued there is a "reasonable probability" the Supreme Court will grant review and a "fair prospect" it will reverse the lower courts, citing presidential immunity and the Westfall Act. They contended the statements at issue, made during Trump's first presidency, fall within the scope of his official duties, entitling him to immunity or substitution of the United States as defendant. "Absent a stay, President Trump will suffer ongoing irreparable harm due to violation of his right to immunity from this defamation suit for his official statements," the filing stated.

The motion follows the Second Circuit's April 29 denial of Trump's request for an en banc rehearing of a panel decision upholding the January 2024 jury verdict. The jury awarded Carroll $83.3 million after finding Trump defamed her by calling her claims lies and politically motivated following her first trial. Trump has maintained that the allegations are false and the cases are politically driven.

Carroll's attorneys do not oppose the stay provided Trump posts an additional $7.46 million bond for post-judgment interest. Separately, the Justice Department plans to seek permission to intervene in Trump's anticipated Supreme Court appeal, arguing on presidential immunity grounds.

This marks the second Carroll case to reach the Supreme Court docket. In November 2025, Trump petitioned for review of a $5 million verdict from a May 2023 trial where a jury found him liable for sexual abuse and defamation related to an alleged 1990s encounter. That petition (No. 25-573) remains pending after multiple conference reschedulings, with the latest distribution for the May 1 conference.

The cases stem from Carroll's accusations that Trump assaulted her in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room in the mid-1990s. Trump denied knowing her and called the claims a "hoax." A federal judge allowed the 2023 trial to proceed after dismissing Trump's countersuit under the Adult Survivors Act.

Trump posted a bond exceeding $91 million to cover both verdicts during appeals. The Second Circuit rejected a reduced bond proposal last year. The Supreme Court's handling could revisit presidential immunity precedents amid ongoing legal battles involving the current commander in chief.