Donald Trump has a whole new E. Jean Carroll problem

Leave it to Donald Trump to post his way into further legal trouble, thanks to his famous lack of impulse control. In a Memorial Day rant on Truth Social, Trump launched a gratuitous attack against E. Jean Carroll and the defamation cases she won against him. In so doing, he just opened the door to even greater liability.
โHappy Memorial Day to All,โ Trump began, before quickly slamming Carroll, presiding Manhattan federal court Judge Lewis Kaplan, and others as โHuman Scum.โ Trump again claimed that he never met Carroll aside from โa quick handshake at a celebrity event, 25 years ago, doesn’t count!โ and that she was awarded โ91 MILLION DOLLARS FOR โDEFAMATIONโโ in โTWO separate trials.โ
Last year, a jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse at Bergdorf Goodman in the 1990s and defamation against Carroll, awarding her $5 million in damages. A new defamation trial ended in January when another jury awarded Carroll $83.3 million over remarks Trump made criticizing her and denying her assault claims. (The required bond payment, representing 110% of the award, is just over $91 million.)
Roberta Kaplan, Carrollโs lawyer, wasted no time responding to Trumpโs โHuman Scumโ post. In a statement to Newsweek that โall options are on the table,โ Kaplan made clear that Carroll reserves the right to pursue further legal action based on any new defamatory statements. Kaplan has suggested this before, such as after Trump referred to Carroll as โMs. Bergdorf Goodmanโ and belittled her claim in an interview on CNBCโs โSquawk Boxโ a few months ago.
Kaplan noted that the statute of limitations for defamation ranges from one and three years, depending on the jurisdiction. Not only is there plenty of time for new defamation claims, but Kaplan stated that her legal team is at the ready, closely monitoring every statement Trump makes about Carroll. As much as Trump may love spewing inflammatory statements, he is learning (very slowly, apparently) that defamatory ones come with a hefty price tag. The bigger Trumpโs mouth, the smaller his wallet.

Ron Leshnower is a lawyer and the author of several books, including President Trump’s Month