Former President Donald Trump is facing a number of legal challenges, including a defamation suit filed by author E. Jean Carroll.

According to Reuters, Trump suffered a setback in the case last week when a federal judge denied a motion from his attorneys. 

Trump lawyers sought to have prospective jurors fill out questionnaires

The former president's legal team had asked that prospective jurors be made to provide their names, employment, and 38 other pieces of information in written questionnaires.

NBC News reported that Trump lawyer Joe Tacopina laid out his rationale for the request in a letter sent out on April 11, pointing to Trump's recent indictment by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.

"Holding the trial of this case a mere three weeks after these historic events will guarantee that many, if not most, prospective jurors will have the criminal allegations top of mind when judging President Trump's defense against Ms. Carroll's allegations," he wrote.

"That is a predictable consequence of the wall-to-wall media coverage of the criminal case: the unsealing of the indictment and President Trump's arraignment on April 4, 2023 were accompanied by coverage on all television networks and resulted in at least 60,000 day-of-news stories," Tacopina continued.

Judge says "there is no justification" for request

"Widely covered criminal charges against a civil litigant should raise urgent concerns over potential contamination of prospective jurors," he insisted.

However, U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan shot down Tacopina's request on Friday, adding that the law is "abundantly clear" about his discretion regarding whether such questionnaires should be used.

"This case is entirely unrelated to the state prosecution," Kaplan said in his ruling, adding that "there is no justification" to question jurors.

"The suggestion that the recent media coverage of the New York indictment — coverage significantly (though certainly not entirely) invited or provoked by Mr. Trump’s own actions — would preclude selection of a fair and impartial jury on April 25 is pure speculation," he declared.

Carroll accused Trump of raping her three decades ago

NBC News reported last fall that Carroll's lawsuit against Trump arose from an allegation that he sexually assaulted her nearly three decades ago in the dressing room of a Manhattan luxury department store.

Trump categorically denied Carroll's claim, saying that she "completely made up a story that I met her at the doors of this crowded New York City Department Store and, within minutes, 'swooned' her."

"It is a Hoax and a lie, just like all the other Hoaxes that have been played on me for the past seven years," Trump declared.

Carroll responded by suing Trump for defamation, asserting that he had damaged her reputation by calling her a liar.