Trump questioned in E. Jean Carroll defamation lawsuit. What we know about the case. - USA TODAY

Former President Donald Trump was questioned Wednesday, nether oath, successful a defamation suit filed against him successful 2019 by E. Jean Carroll, said Zak Sawyer, a spokesperson for the instrumentality steadfast representing Carroll.

Carroll is the journalist, writer and erstwhile proposal columnist for Elle mag who has accused Trump of raping her successful a New York City section store much than 2 decades agone – an allegation Trump has denied.En

The ineligible questioning of Trump, which his lawyers agelong battled to avoid, was expected to instrumentality spot astatine his Mar-a-Lago location successful Florida.

"We’re pleased that connected behalf of our client, E. Jean Carroll, we were capable to instrumentality Donald Trump’s deposition today. We are not capable to remark further,” said Sawyer.

Alina Habba, an lawyer for Trump, said the deposition enabled the erstwhile president to "set the grounds straight."

"This lawsuit is thing much than a governmental ploy similar galore others" against Trump, she added.

What does E. Jean Carroll allege?

She wrote a publication called "What Do We Need Men For? A Modest Proposal," which contains a statement of the alleged assault. An excerpt of the publication besides was published successful New York Magazine.

Carroll's relationship said Trump, whom she had met before, forced himself connected her successful a dressing country successful the Bergdorf Goodman's section store during the 1990s aft asking her to effort connected lingerie that helium considered buying arsenic a gift. 

What has Trump said astir the allegations?

He denied ever knowing oregon gathering Carroll, adjacent though a photograph with the New York Magazine excerpt showed the 2 together. He besides said Carroll was "not my type." Noting that Carroll was trying to boost income for her book, helium said it should beryllium "sold successful the fabrication section."

How person Trump and his lawyers responded successful court?

Filings by the erstwhile president's ineligible squad person denied Carroll's allegations and tried to person her tribunal lawsuit dismissed oregon delayed.

Trump's lawyers argued initially that find successful the lawsuit – the process successful which some sides successful a quality speech grounds and sworn depositions of witnesses – should person been halted and the suit dismissed for deficiency of idiosyncratic jurisdiction implicit Trump.

That question was denied for deficiency of an affidavit successful enactment from Trump and lack of a ground for dismissal.

Is Carroll the lone pistillate who has accused Trump of intersexual misconduct?

Multiple women came guardant with akin charges against Trump during and aft the 2016 statesmanlike campaign. Trump himself was heard boasting of groping women connected an "Access Hollywood" tape that was leaked during the campaign.

Summer Zervos, a onetime contestant connected the TV amusement "The Apprentice" that starred Trump, sued him for defamation aft helium denied her relationship of having been sexually victimized. Attorneys for some sides successful that lawsuit agreed to a 2021 stipulation that ended the lawsuit.

When did Carroll instrumentality her allegations to court?

She filed a New York State tribunal suit successful 2019 that, similar the Zervos case, accused Trump of defamation. The suit was brought against Trump successful his idiosyncratic capacity, not arsenic president.

"After helium lied astir attacking her, helium surrounded that cardinal prevarication with a swarm of related lies successful an effort to explicate wherefore she would invent an accusation of rape. To bash so, helium smeared her integrity, honesty, and dignity – each successful the nationalist press," the suit said.

In 2020, during Trump's White House term, the Justice Department, past headed by Attorney General William Barr, moved the lawsuit to national court. The determination was based connected a instrumentality designed to support national employees from lawsuits related to their authoritative authorities duties.

Government lawyers moved to substitute the U.S. government, which cannot beryllium sued for defamation, successful Trump's spot arsenic the defendant. That could person prompted a dismissal.

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What did the national tribunal rule?

U.S. District Court Judge Lewis Kaplan rejected the substitution effort.

"The undisputed facts show that President Trump was not acting successful furtherance of immoderate duties owed to immoderate arguable leader erstwhile helium made the statements astatine issue. His comments acrophobic an alleged intersexual battle that took spot respective decades earlier helium took office, and the allegations person nary narration to the authoritative concern of the United States," Kaplan wrote.

The justice besides concluded that Trump was not a national employee. That uncovering was overturned successful a 2-1 determination past period by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. The appeals tribunal determination did not regularisation connected whether Trump's comments astir Carroll were made successful his capableness arsenic president. The judges asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to reappraisal that question.

Why is the questioning of Trump going forward?

Alina Habba, an lawyer for Trump, successful a missive past period asked Kaplan to enactment the lawsuit connected clasp pending a ruling by the D.C. Circuit on whether Trump's comments astir Carroll were made arsenic portion of his authorities duties.

Kaplan denied the motion, ruling that Trump "has not established that helium has a beardown likelihood of success" to prevail in the pending appeals tribunal review.

Is a last determination connected Carroll's allegations near?

Probably not.

New York State lawmakers precocious enacted a statute that gives big victims of intersexual battle a one-year model to record civilian lawsuits against their alleged attackers, nary substance however agelong agone the alleged assaults took place.

Roberta Kaplan, an lawyer for Carroll, notified the judge last period that her lawsuit plans to record specified a suit connected Nov. 24, the day the one-year model opens. Kaplan said she would inquire the justice to bring the 2 cases to proceedings arsenic related matters successful aboriginal 2023.

"The question whether Mr. Trump successful information raped Ms. Carroll is cardinal to this case. But it volition beryllium cardinal besides to the caller lawsuit that volition astir surely beryllium filed connected November 24, 2022, oregon soon thereafter," the justice wrote. "Accordingly, find and grounds related to whether oregon not the rape occurred is applicable to some cases."