Trump's defamation case ends - with a huge sum to pay
EPACopyright: EPA
Trump leaving Trump Tower this morning for the final day of the trialImage caption: Trump leaving Trump Tower this morning for the final day of the trial
So that's it, Donald Trump's second defamation case brought by the columnist E Jean Carroll is over, and we're closing our live coverage.
What happened? In a decision delivered after just two and a half hours of deliberations, a jury in New York ordered Trump to pay $83.3m in damages to Carroll - a stinging defeat for the former president.
Trump had already been found to have defamed her with comments he made in 2019 while he was president. This jury's job was just to decide how much he should pay - and they went above and beyond what Carroll had been seeking.
Carroll argued that Trump's comments - when he claimed she lied about him sexually assaulting her - destroyed her reputation and unleashed a torrent of death threats from his supporters.
RonNell Anderson Jones, a law professor at the University of Utah, provided the BBC with her analysis of the verdict.
Jones said that the amount of punitive damages is not so "disproportionate" to compensatory damages that it would raise any red flags, adding that she expects the damages amount "will stick".
Jones noted that Carroll "showed that the defendant has both bragged of substantial wealth and publicly resolved to repeat the lie 'a thousand times'".
Are the damages making Trump more cautious?
Jones points to an early clue that the damages might be having a deterrent effect: his social media post immediately after the verdict.
While Trump did call it “absolutely ridiculous”, he did not follow his previous pattern of attacking Carroll or reiterating that he had never met her or that her book was a hoax.
Instead he chose to go after the Biden administration and the legal system more widely.
"It is possible that he is now choosing his words a bit more carefully."
Rival Nikki Haley weighs in on damages
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images
Donald Trump's last remaining challenger for the Republican presidential nomination, Nikki Haley, commented on X, formerly known as Twitter, about the $83m in damages.
"Donald Trump wants to be the presumptive Republican nominee and we’re talking about $83 million in damages. We’re not talking about fixing the border. We’re not talking about tackling inflation."
"America can do better than Donald Trump and Joe Biden," she wrote.
Trump's allies are pointing out that both Haley's campaign and Carroll's legal fund have previously received funding from LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, a billionaire Democratic donor who is a harsh critic of Trump.
Court sketches show moment verdict was delivered
We've received some court sketches from the moment the jury's decision was read out this afternoon.
ReutersCopyright: Reuters
Court artist Jane Rosenberg captured the moment Carroll hugged her team after the decision came inImage caption: Court artist Jane Rosenberg captured the moment Carroll hugged her team after the decision came in
ReutersCopyright: Reuters
Carroll held her attorney's hands as the verdict was deliveredImage caption: Carroll held her attorney's hands as the verdict was delivered
ReutersCopyright: Reuters
This close-up shows the verdict being read. The judge urged the jurors to stay anonymousImage caption: This close-up shows the verdict being read. The judge urged the jurors to stay anonymous
Is Trump's appeal likely to succeed?
Nada Tawfik
Reporting from New York
Former federal prosecutor Mitch Epner tells me that although Donald Trump can pursue an appeal, it may prove an uphill battle.
The question of liability was determined in the first trial - and Judge Kaplan ran the case to be “appeal proof", he says.
University of Richmond law professor Carol Tobias believes Trump would be unlikely to win on appeal.
Why?
"Because," he says, "Judge Kaplan is a highly experienced jurist, who seemed to fairly and carefully try the case."
Prof Tobias also says it seems "extremely unlikely" that the case would end up at the US Supreme Court because those justices rarely ever review cases involving such civil trials.
'The whole point of this... is to tell Trump to shut up'
A law professor on the Fox News cable channel has said Friday's verdict is a message to Donald Trump "not just that he should stop insulting Carroll, but he has to stop disrespecting the justice system".
"The whole point of this enormous, unprecedented damages bill is to tell Donald Trump to shut up," said John Yoo, a conservative law professor at the University of California, Berkeley.
"I can't believe his lawyers haven't succeeded in telling him: campaign for president, make your accusations about a two-tiered justice system, but leave this alone," he continued.
"He has to stop repeating the same things he's said before and that he's lost on again and again."
Yoo, who once served as a lawyer for the justice department, added: "By continuing to defy the court, he's showing a fundamental disrespect for the justice system and the views of his fellow citizens, the jury."
Carroll: 'Great victory for every woman'
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images
E Jean Carroll exiting court on FridayImage caption: E Jean Carroll exiting court on Friday
E Jean Carroll said in a statement: "This is a great victory for every woman who stands up when she’s been knocked down, and a huge defeat for every bully who has tried to keep a woman down."
Her attorney, Robbie Kaplan, thanked the jury "for standing up for E Jean and the rule of law".
“Today’s verdict proves that the law applies to everyone in our country, even the rich, even the famous, even former presidents," Kaplan said in a statement.
"There is a way to stand up to someone like Donald Trump who cares more about wealth, fame, and power than respecting the law. Standing up to a bully takes courage and bravery; it takes someone like E Jean Carroll."
Trump's misbehaviour may have helped Carroll's case, says law expert
Nada Tawfik
Reporting from New York
Law professor Carl Tobias says he thinks Trump’s "misbehaviour throughout the trial" - for example when he was told off by the judge for interrupting - and especially his conduct during the closing arguments today partly explain the substantial size of the award.
Earlier, Trump was seen shaking his head during closing arguments and then stood up and left midway through.
Tobias says "the lack of respect which Trump exhibited for the judge, the jurors, the opposing counsel, especially Carroll and the civil trial process may have suggested to the jury that Trump had defamed Carroll and reinforced the strength of her case, the credibility of her testimony, and that a large damage award was appropriate and warranted".
"After all, punitive damages are intended to punish and make an example of the defendant."
Judge asked, 'does the M on this form mean millions?'
An interesting tidbit now from inside the courtroom earlier.
The BBC's US partner CBS News reports that the judge had a question for the foreperson of the jury after he received the verdict sheet.
"Does the 'M' on this form mean millions?" Judge Lewis Kaplan asked.
The jury foreperson confirmed it did, leaving Donald Trump's legal team looking dejected before Judge Kaplan even read out the damages bill.
Why Trump does not have to pay Carroll yet
Nada Tawfik
Reporting from New York
The former president has made clear he will appeal today's decision - just as he did after he was ordered to pay E Jean Carroll $5m in the first defamation trial.
Former federal prosecutor Mitch Epner says Trump has avoided having to pay her any money so far by paying a deposit to the court while the appeal process plays out.
He says the same rules will apply to these much higher damages. Trump will have to stump up an extra $83.3m - in either cash or an appeal bond - as a deposit.
Without that, Epner says, Carroll can start seizing the former president's personal assets around the country, even putting liens on his real estate.
'I'm proud to stand with Trump', says lawyer Habba as she attacks judge
Video content
Video caption: Trump's attorney says she will continue to stand by himTrump's attorney says she will continue to stand by him
Trump's lawyer, Alina Habba, spoke outside court to reporters, saying: "I am so proud to stand with President Trump. But I am not proud to stand with what I saw in that courtroom."
Habba claimed that the "judge decided that every single defence President Trump had, we were not allowed to raise in front of the jury".
Trump and his lawyers faced restrictions on what they could say, because this trial was solely about how much he should pay in damages. The judge had already ruled that he had made defamatory comments, and a different trial previously found him liable for sexually assaulting Carroll.
Habba called the court proceedings "a violation of everything I stand for" and that this why "so many Americans are so proud that he is running again and so excited to run to the ballot box".
Jury decided only a big sum would stop Trump, says legal expert
Kayla Epstein
US reporter
"This is a large sum. This is a very, very large sum," said Dmitriy Shakhnevich, an attorney and professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice says.
Carroll’s lawyers successfully made the case to the jury that only a significant amount of damages could compel him to stop defaming her, he tells me.
An award for punitive damages “relies on severity of the conduct,” Shakhnevich says.
"What the jury is saying is this is a wealthy man who’s not stopping, and the only way to stop him is to hurt him [financially].”
While we cannot know the jury’s private deliberations, a penalty this large “speaks to the circumstances of the case, and what they thought of it, for sure,” he says.
“There may be appellate procedures, maybe some reductions, but this isn't a good thing and that's for sure."
Passers-by stop to see what's happening
Brandon Livesay
Reporting from court in New York
BBCCopyright: BBC
Carroll didn't stop to talk to reportersImage caption: Carroll didn't stop to talk to reporters
As I jostled through a scrum of photographers and curious New Yorkers waiting to see what the crowd was about, E Jean Carroll was ushered into a waiting SUV with a massive grin plastered across her face.
A man in a puffer jacket and a New York Yankees hat asks me who she is, and when he hears she just won $83.3m from trump, he gives a quick fist pump and says: "Wow".
Watch: Big smiles from Carroll and team as they leave court
Video content
Video caption: E Jean Carroll leaves court after $83.3m verdictE Jean Carroll leaves court after $83.3m verdict
E Jean Carroll, 80, walked out of the courtroom, locking arms with her legal team and smiling brightly.
A sea of reporters peppered the group with questions, but they appeared to not say anything as they entered a waiting SUV.
As we reported earlier, Donald Trump was not in court. He left about half an hour before jurors reached a verdict, other US outlets have reported.
The case has now been adjourned and the courtroom has emptied out.
Minutes after the jury came back with its decision, Trump posted on his social media platform Truth Social, calling the verdict "absolutely ridiculous".
He says he "will be appealing this whole Biden Directed Witch Hunt focused on me and the Republican Party".
Trump also claims the "legal system is out of control", alleging it is being used as a "political weapon".
And he reiterates what he muttered under his breath in court on Thursday, saying "this is not America".
Judge advises jurors never to say they were on this case
Brandon Livesay
Reporting from court in New York
While thanking the jurors for their work during the trial, Judge Kaplan said they were free to tell people they were involved in the trial.
But he gave a stern word of warning, saying he advised against them ever telling anyone that they were on this jury.
Quote Message: My advice to you is that you never disclose that you were on this jury, and I won’t say anything more about it"
My advice to you is that you never disclose that you were on this jury, and I won’t say anything more about it"
The breakdown of the damages
In E Jean Carroll's first trial against Donald Trump last year, which found Trump sexually abused and defamed her, Carroll was awarded $5m in damages.
At the outset of this new separate trial, Carroll asked for twice that amount - $10m - because it focused on defamatory comments made when Trump was president, which she said hurt her more.
Jurors were tasked with weighing the sum of two kinds of damages: compensatory and punitive.
In closing arguments on Friday, Carroll's lawyer urged the jury to order Trump to pay at least $24m in compensatory damages - $12m for reputational harm and $12m for emotional harm - and whatever amount in punitive damages might "make him stop" defaming her client.
The jury decided to award Carroll:
$11m for reputational damages
$7.3m for emotional harm
$65m in punitive damages
To determine the punitive damages, jurors had to decide whether Trump "acted maliciously, out of hatred, ill will, or spite, vindictively, or in wanton, reckless or wilful disregard of Ms Carroll's rights".
Friday's verdict is more than eight times what Carroll's team originally asked for.
Carroll smiling as she leaves court
BBCCopyright: BBC
BBCCopyright: BBC
'We will have no outbursts', warned judge before ruling
Brandon Livesay
Reporting from court in New York
Trump didn't show up in court this afternoon for the decision.
But the judge warned prior to reading the ruling that "we will have no outbursts".
Trump had previously been told off by the judge for interrupting proceedings on previous days in this five-day trial. He was in court this morning for closing arguments.
Carroll hugs lawyers after verdict read out
Brandon Livesay
Reporting from court in New York
As the jury's decision was read out, E Jean Carroll held her attorney's hands the whole time while sitting in the front row.
Her two main lawyers and her had a three-person embrace for several seconds after the judge finished.
Live Reporting
Edited by Jude Sheerin
All times stated are UK
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EPACopyright: EPA Trump leaving Trump Tower this morning for the final day of the trialImage caption: Trump leaving Trump Tower this morning for the final day of the trial 
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images 
ReutersCopyright: Reuters Court artist Jane Rosenberg captured the moment Carroll hugged her team after the decision came inImage caption: Court artist Jane Rosenberg captured the moment Carroll hugged her team after the decision came in 
ReutersCopyright: Reuters Carroll held her attorney's hands as the verdict was deliveredImage caption: Carroll held her attorney's hands as the verdict was delivered 
ReutersCopyright: Reuters This close-up shows the verdict being read. The judge urged the jurors to stay anonymousImage caption: This close-up shows the verdict being read. The judge urged the jurors to stay anonymous 
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images E Jean Carroll exiting court on FridayImage caption: E Jean Carroll exiting court on Friday 
Video caption: Trump's attorney says she will continue to stand by himTrump's attorney says she will continue to stand by him - Read more: Who is Alina Habba?
BBCCopyright: BBC Carroll didn't stop to talk to reportersImage caption: Carroll didn't stop to talk to reporters Video caption: E Jean Carroll leaves court after $83.3m verdictE Jean Carroll leaves court after $83.3m verdict 
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$11m for reputational damages
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$7.3m for emotional harm
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$65m in punitive damages
BBCCopyright: BBC 
BBCCopyright: BBC 
Latest PostTrump's defamation case ends - with a huge sum to pay
So that's it, Donald Trump's second defamation case brought by the columnist E Jean Carroll is over, and we're closing our live coverage.
What happened? In a decision delivered after just two and a half hours of deliberations, a jury in New York ordered Trump to pay $83.3m in damages to Carroll - a stinging defeat for the former president.
Trump had already been found to have defamed her with comments he made in 2019 while he was president. This jury's job was just to decide how much he should pay - and they went above and beyond what Carroll had been seeking.
Carroll argued that Trump's comments - when he claimed she lied about him sexually assaulting her - destroyed her reputation and unleashed a torrent of death threats from his supporters.
How much must he pay? The $83m payout is made up of $11m to Carroll for reputational damage, $7.3m for emotional harm and $65m in punitive damages. But as our reporter explains, he won't have to pay Carroll yet.
What next? Trump has said he'll appeal and has described the trial as a witch hunt. Here's our write-up of what went on.
Law professor expects damages amount to 'stick'
RonNell Anderson Jones, a law professor at the University of Utah, provided the BBC with her analysis of the verdict.
Jones said that the amount of punitive damages is not so "disproportionate" to compensatory damages that it would raise any red flags, adding that she expects the damages amount "will stick".
Jones noted that Carroll "showed that the defendant has both bragged of substantial wealth and publicly resolved to repeat the lie 'a thousand times'".
Are the damages making Trump more cautious?
Jones points to an early clue that the damages might be having a deterrent effect: his social media post immediately after the verdict.
While Trump did call it “absolutely ridiculous”, he did not follow his previous pattern of attacking Carroll or reiterating that he had never met her or that her book was a hoax.
Instead he chose to go after the Biden administration and the legal system more widely.
"It is possible that he is now choosing his words a bit more carefully."
Rival Nikki Haley weighs in on damages
Donald Trump's last remaining challenger for the Republican presidential nomination, Nikki Haley, commented on X, formerly known as Twitter, about the $83m in damages.
"Donald Trump wants to be the presumptive Republican nominee and we’re talking about $83 million in damages. We’re not talking about fixing the border. We’re not talking about tackling inflation."
"America can do better than Donald Trump and Joe Biden," she wrote.
Trump's allies are pointing out that both Haley's campaign and Carroll's legal fund have previously received funding from LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, a billionaire Democratic donor who is a harsh critic of Trump.
Court sketches show moment verdict was delivered
We've received some court sketches from the moment the jury's decision was read out this afternoon.
Is Trump's appeal likely to succeed?
Nada Tawfik
Reporting from New York
Former federal prosecutor Mitch Epner tells me that although Donald Trump can pursue an appeal, it may prove an uphill battle.
The question of liability was determined in the first trial - and Judge Kaplan ran the case to be “appeal proof", he says.
University of Richmond law professor Carol Tobias believes Trump would be unlikely to win on appeal.
Why?
"Because," he says, "Judge Kaplan is a highly experienced jurist, who seemed to fairly and carefully try the case."
Prof Tobias also says it seems "extremely unlikely" that the case would end up at the US Supreme Court because those justices rarely ever review cases involving such civil trials.
'The whole point of this... is to tell Trump to shut up'
A law professor on the Fox News cable channel has said Friday's verdict is a message to Donald Trump "not just that he should stop insulting Carroll, but he has to stop disrespecting the justice system".
"The whole point of this enormous, unprecedented damages bill is to tell Donald Trump to shut up," said John Yoo, a conservative law professor at the University of California, Berkeley.
"I can't believe his lawyers haven't succeeded in telling him: campaign for president, make your accusations about a two-tiered justice system, but leave this alone," he continued.
"He has to stop repeating the same things he's said before and that he's lost on again and again."
Yoo, who once served as a lawyer for the justice department, added: "By continuing to defy the court, he's showing a fundamental disrespect for the justice system and the views of his fellow citizens, the jury."
Carroll: 'Great victory for every woman'
E Jean Carroll said in a statement: "This is a great victory for every woman who stands up when she’s been knocked down, and a huge defeat for every bully who has tried to keep a woman down."
Her attorney, Robbie Kaplan, thanked the jury "for standing up for E Jean and the rule of law".
“Today’s verdict proves that the law applies to everyone in our country, even the rich, even the famous, even former presidents," Kaplan said in a statement.
"There is a way to stand up to someone like Donald Trump who cares more about wealth, fame, and power than respecting the law. Standing up to a bully takes courage and bravery; it takes someone like E Jean Carroll."
Trump's misbehaviour may have helped Carroll's case, says law expert
Nada Tawfik
Reporting from New York
Law professor Carl Tobias says he thinks Trump’s "misbehaviour throughout the trial" - for example when he was told off by the judge for interrupting - and especially his conduct during the closing arguments today partly explain the substantial size of the award.
Earlier, Trump was seen shaking his head during closing arguments and then stood up and left midway through.
Tobias says "the lack of respect which Trump exhibited for the judge, the jurors, the opposing counsel, especially Carroll and the civil trial process may have suggested to the jury that Trump had defamed Carroll and reinforced the strength of her case, the credibility of her testimony, and that a large damage award was appropriate and warranted".
"After all, punitive damages are intended to punish and make an example of the defendant."
Judge asked, 'does the M on this form mean millions?'
An interesting tidbit now from inside the courtroom earlier.
The BBC's US partner CBS News reports that the judge had a question for the foreperson of the jury after he received the verdict sheet.
"Does the 'M' on this form mean millions?" Judge Lewis Kaplan asked.
The jury foreperson confirmed it did, leaving Donald Trump's legal team looking dejected before Judge Kaplan even read out the damages bill.
Why Trump does not have to pay Carroll yet
Nada Tawfik
Reporting from New York
The former president has made clear he will appeal today's decision - just as he did after he was ordered to pay E Jean Carroll $5m in the first defamation trial.
Former federal prosecutor Mitch Epner says Trump has avoided having to pay her any money so far by paying a deposit to the court while the appeal process plays out.
He says the same rules will apply to these much higher damages. Trump will have to stump up an extra $83.3m - in either cash or an appeal bond - as a deposit.
Without that, Epner says, Carroll can start seizing the former president's personal assets around the country, even putting liens on his real estate.
'I'm proud to stand with Trump', says lawyer Habba as she attacks judge
Video content
Trump's lawyer, Alina Habba, spoke outside court to reporters, saying: "I am so proud to stand with President Trump. But I am not proud to stand with what I saw in that courtroom."
Habba claimed that the "judge decided that every single defence President Trump had, we were not allowed to raise in front of the jury".
Trump and his lawyers faced restrictions on what they could say, because this trial was solely about how much he should pay in damages. The judge had already ruled that he had made defamatory comments, and a different trial previously found him liable for sexually assaulting Carroll.
Habba called the court proceedings "a violation of everything I stand for" and that this why "so many Americans are so proud that he is running again and so excited to run to the ballot box".
Jury decided only a big sum would stop Trump, says legal expert
Kayla Epstein
US reporter
"This is a large sum. This is a very, very large sum," said Dmitriy Shakhnevich, an attorney and professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice says.
Carroll’s lawyers successfully made the case to the jury that only a significant amount of damages could compel him to stop defaming her, he tells me.
An award for punitive damages “relies on severity of the conduct,” Shakhnevich says.
"What the jury is saying is this is a wealthy man who’s not stopping, and the only way to stop him is to hurt him [financially].”
While we cannot know the jury’s private deliberations, a penalty this large “speaks to the circumstances of the case, and what they thought of it, for sure,” he says.
“There may be appellate procedures, maybe some reductions, but this isn't a good thing and that's for sure."
Passers-by stop to see what's happening
Brandon Livesay
Reporting from court in New York
As I jostled through a scrum of photographers and curious New Yorkers waiting to see what the crowd was about, E Jean Carroll was ushered into a waiting SUV with a massive grin plastered across her face.
A man in a puffer jacket and a New York Yankees hat asks me who she is, and when he hears she just won $83.3m from trump, he gives a quick fist pump and says: "Wow".
Watch: Big smiles from Carroll and team as they leave court
Video content
E Jean Carroll, 80, walked out of the courtroom, locking arms with her legal team and smiling brightly.
A sea of reporters peppered the group with questions, but they appeared to not say anything as they entered a waiting SUV.
As we reported earlier, Donald Trump was not in court. He left about half an hour before jurors reached a verdict, other US outlets have reported.
The case has now been adjourned and the courtroom has emptied out.
'Absolutely ridiculous' - Trump slams verdict online
Minutes after the jury came back with its decision, Trump posted on his social media platform Truth Social, calling the verdict "absolutely ridiculous".
He says he "will be appealing this whole Biden Directed Witch Hunt focused on me and the Republican Party".
Trump also claims the "legal system is out of control", alleging it is being used as a "political weapon".
And he reiterates what he muttered under his breath in court on Thursday, saying "this is not America".
Judge advises jurors never to say they were on this case
Brandon Livesay
Reporting from court in New York
While thanking the jurors for their work during the trial, Judge Kaplan said they were free to tell people they were involved in the trial.
But he gave a stern word of warning, saying he advised against them ever telling anyone that they were on this jury.
The breakdown of the damages
In E Jean Carroll's first trial against Donald Trump last year, which found Trump sexually abused and defamed her, Carroll was awarded $5m in damages.
At the outset of this new separate trial, Carroll asked for twice that amount - $10m - because it focused on defamatory comments made when Trump was president, which she said hurt her more.
Jurors were tasked with weighing the sum of two kinds of damages: compensatory and punitive.
In closing arguments on Friday, Carroll's lawyer urged the jury to order Trump to pay at least $24m in compensatory damages - $12m for reputational harm and $12m for emotional harm - and whatever amount in punitive damages might "make him stop" defaming her client.
The jury decided to award Carroll:
To determine the punitive damages, jurors had to decide whether Trump "acted maliciously, out of hatred, ill will, or spite, vindictively, or in wanton, reckless or wilful disregard of Ms Carroll's rights".
Friday's verdict is more than eight times what Carroll's team originally asked for.
Carroll smiling as she leaves court
'We will have no outbursts', warned judge before ruling
Brandon Livesay
Reporting from court in New York
Trump didn't show up in court this afternoon for the decision.
But the judge warned prior to reading the ruling that "we will have no outbursts".
Trump had previously been told off by the judge for interrupting proceedings on previous days in this five-day trial. He was in court this morning for closing arguments.
Carroll hugs lawyers after verdict read out
Brandon Livesay
Reporting from court in New York
As the jury's decision was read out, E Jean Carroll held her attorney's hands the whole time while sitting in the front row.
Her two main lawyers and her had a three-person embrace for several seconds after the judge finished.