Writer E. Jean Carroll leaves the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, where former U.S. President Donald Trump is asking a federal appeals court to overturn a $5 million jury verdict finding him liable for sexually assaulting and defaming her, who accused Trump of raping her nearly three decades ago, in Manhattan, New York, U.S., September 6, 2024. REUTERS/Adam Gray/File Photo

By Jonathan Stempel and Luc Cohen

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A federal appeals court on Monday refused to throw out an $83.3 million jury verdict against U.S. President Donald Trump for damaging the reputation of the writer E. Jean Carroll in 2019 when he denied her rape claim.

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan rejected Trump's argument that the January 2024 verdict should be overturned because he deserved presidential immunity.

It also faulted Trump's persistence in attacking Carroll, with attacks against the former Elle magazine columnist becoming "more extreme and frequent" as the trial approached.

"The record in this case supports the district court's determination that the 'degree of reprehensibility' of Mr. Trump's conduct was remarkably high, perhaps unprecedented," the unanimous three-judge panel said in its unsigned decision.

A different jury in May 2023 found Trump liable to Carroll for sexual abuse and defamation, but not rape, and awarded her $5 million. The appeals court upheld that verdict in June.

Both verdicts are among a slew of legal woes Trump faced after leaving the White House in 2021.

The Republican denied all wrongdoing, and on the campaign trail portrayed his courtroom battles as part of a Democratic-led plot to undermine his ultimately successful 2024 campaign.

Trump is appealing other courtroom losses, including his May 2024 criminal conviction for falsifying records to cover up a sex scandal, and a fraud finding in New York Attorney General Letitia James' civil lawsuit over his family business.

The appeals are continuing though Trump received no prison time in the criminal case, and persuaded a New York state appeals court to throw out a roughly half-billion-dollar penalty in the civil case.

In a statement on Monday, Trump's lawyers said: "President Trump will keep winning against Liberal Lawfare, as he is focusing on his mission to Make America Great Again."

Carroll's lawyer Roberta Kaplan said in a statement: "We look forward to an end to the appellate process so that justice will finally be done."

'NOT MY TYPE'

Carroll, 81, accused Trump of attacking her around 1996 in a Bergdorf Goodman department store dressing room.

Trump, 79, first denied her claim in June 2019, telling a reporter that Carroll was "not my type" and concocted the story to sell her memoir "What Do We Need Men For?"

He essentially repeated his comments in an October 2022 Truth Social post, leading to the $5 million verdict.

The $83.3 million award comprised $18.3 million of damages for emotional and reputational harm, and $65 million of punitive damages.

In Monday's decision, the appeals court found the $83.3 million award reasonable "in light of the extraordinary and egregious facts" of the case.

"The conduct here supports a significant punitive damages award," the court wrote. "It involved malice and deceit, caused severe emotional injury, and continued over at least a five-year period."

Trump had argued that the U.S. Supreme Court's July 2024 decision affording him substantial criminal immunity shielded him from liability in Carroll's civil case.

He also said he spoke about Carroll in 2019 in his capacity as president, and failing to give him immunity could undermine the Executive Branch's independence.

Trump also said U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan, who oversaw both trials, erred by striking his testimony that, in speaking about Carroll, "I just wanted to defend myself, my family, and frankly the presidency."

The appeals court said that answer "implied that Carroll's accusations were false and improper," and was properly excluded because the judge had decided differently.

In June, Carroll released another memoir, "Not My Type: One Woman vs. a President," about her legal battles against Trump.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel and Luc Cohen in New York; Editing by Kevin Liffey and Bill Berkrot)