NLPC Files Bar Complaint Against Roberta Kaplan Over Delayed Disclosure in E. Jean Carroll Trump Lawsuits

The National Legal and Policy Center filed a 15-page bar complaint on July 2, 2026, with the Attorney Grievance Committee of the New York State Supreme Court against attorney Roberta Ann Kaplan. The complaint alleges ethical violations in Kaplan’s representation of E. Jean Carroll in her defamation lawsuits against President Donald Trump.

Kaplan is accused of failing to promptly correct a false statement made by Carroll during an October 2022 deposition. When asked under oath whether anyone else was paying her legal fees, Carroll answered “No.” The complaint states that Kaplan knew this was inaccurate because funding had come from billionaire Reid Hoffman through his nonprofit American Future Republic, yet she waited nearly six months—until the eve of trial—to disclose the arrangement to opposing counsel and the court.

The complaint further alleges that Kaplan may have charged excessive fees by combining a contingency arrangement with Carroll and payments received from Hoffman’s nonprofit. It also questions whether Kaplan informed Carroll of Hoffman’s documented association with Jeffrey Epstein and obtained her informed consent to accept the funding.

Hoffman’s American Future Republic provided approximately $7 million to Kaplan’s former law firm in 2020 to support aspects of the litigation. Carroll’s two successful defamation cases against Trump resulted in jury awards totaling $5 million in 2023 and $83.3 million in 2024. The Supreme Court declined to hear Trump’s appeal of the $5 million judgment on June 29, 2026.

NLPC counsel Paul Kamenar, who drafted the complaint, stated: “Roberta Kaplan’s coverup of the outside financing of E. Jean Carroll’s lawsuits by billionaire Reid Hoffman for six months and her excuses for doing so should be thoroughly investigated by the New York Bar authorities for ethical violations.”

The filing comes amid a separate Department of Justice investigation into Hoffman’s nonprofit and its role in funding Carroll’s legal expenses. That probe has focused on statements made during the litigation regarding the source of funding.

Kaplan has maintained that Carroll only later recalled the additional nonprofit funding and that disclosure was made promptly once remembered. Trump’s legal team has argued the funding was relevant to questions of bias and third-party influence in the proceedings.

The NLPC complaint seeks a formal investigation into whether Kaplan violated New York Rules of Professional Conduct governing candor toward the tribunal, client communication, and fee arrangements. The Attorney Grievance Committee has not yet issued a public response.

This development adds to ongoing scrutiny of the Carroll litigation and external financing in high-profile cases involving political figures.