In a bid to prevent further delays, lawyers for E. Jean Carroll have urged a federal appeals court to fast-track Donald Trump’s appeal of the verdict in their first trial, which awarded Carroll $5 million in damages for defamation and battery in May 2023.
With Trump’s history of delaying tactics in the case, Carroll’s legal team is seeking to expedite the appeal process, requesting oral arguments to be scheduled by July.
This move comes as Trump faces ongoing criminal trials and a busy campaign schedule, which his opponents fear he will use as an excuse to drag out the appeal.
The motion filed with the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals highlights Trump’s repeated attempts to delay both trials with Carroll, citing a pattern of “dilatory, obstructionist, and bad faith conduct” throughout the proceedings.
Carroll’s lawyers argue that an expedited appellate ruling on the first case would promote a timely resolution in Trump’s separate appeal of the verdict in the second trial, which awarded Carroll $83.3 million in damages for defamation.
The jury in the second trial held in January relied on the jury’s decision in the first trial, per a ruling from the presiding judge. Considering Carroll’s advancing age – she is 80 years old and has been seeking justice for almost five years – her lawyers are pushing for a swift resolution to the appeal.
