COURT NEWSWhen the justices hold their private conference on Friday, Feb. 20, the petitions for review that they are slated to consider will include one from President Donald Trump, asking the Supreme Court to weigh in on the 2023 verdict against him in a civil suit brought by E. Jean Carroll. Trump calls the lawsuit “facially implausible” and “politically motivated”; Carroll urges the court to deny Trump’s petition, telling the justices that the verdict would stand regardless of their ruling. Carroll, a journalist known for writing a popular advice column for Elle for 27 years, filed her lawsuit in 2022. In May 2023, a jury found Trump liable for sexually abusing and defaming Carroll, and awarded her $5 million. Trump appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit, which issued an opinion in December 2024 upholding the verdict.