Donald Trump is suing a woman he was found to have sexually abused – claiming she falsely accused him of rape.
E. Jean Carroll won a civil case against the ex-president in May.
Jurors found Mr Trump sexually assaulted and defamed Ms Carroll. However, they stopped short of finding that Mr Trump had raped her.
He’s now filed a defamation claim of his own against the former magazine writer and wants a retraction of her claims, as well as damages.
Ms Carroll maintains she was raped in a store changing room in the mid-1990s, while Mr Trump insists he can’t remember her and denies all the accusations.
His lawsuit cites comments to CNN after the verdict in which she insisted she had been raped.
He is also appealing against the New York jury’s key finding that he sexually assaulted her and defamed her by calling her a liar.
Mr Trump was ordered to pay $5m (£4m) compensation in the case.
Ms Carroll, a 79-year-old writer, is seeking at least $10m more in a separate defamation claim after Mr Trump criticised the verdict to the media and on social media.
Lawyer Roberta Kaplan, who represents Ms Carroll, said Mr Trump’s new action was his “latest effort to delay accountability”.
“Donald Trump again argues, contrary to both logic and fact, that he was exonerated by a jury that found that he sexually abused E. Jean Carroll,” Ms Kaplan said.
Read more:
All the cases Trump is facing
Trump widens lead over Republican rival despite legal woes
Who’s running to be the next US president?
Be the first to get Breaking News
Install the Sky News app for free
Mr Trump, 77, is aiming to win the presidency again next year but is mired in a number of other cases as well as his legal battle with Ms Carroll.
Most serious is the fact that US authorities have charged him with 37 felony counts after boxes of classified documents were found at his Florida estate.
If convicted, he could be jailed for up to 20 years.
Among other cases is one relating to alleged ‘hush money’ paid to ex-porn actress Stormy Daniels in which he’s accused of falsifying business records.
