Why Trump's $10B defamation lawsuit against WSJ has been dismissed
What's the story
A federal judge has dismissed President Donald Trump's $10 billion defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal and Rupert Murdoch. The case stemmed from a report linking Trump to Jeffrey Epstein. However, US District Judge Darrin P Gayles found that Trump did not prove malice intent in the publication of the article. Still, he has given the president an opportunity to refile an amended complaint.
Case background
Trump filed the lawsuit in July
Trump filed the lawsuit in July, after The Wall Street Journal published a report highlighting his ties to Epstein. The article described a sexually suggestive letter allegedly signed by Trump and featured in an album prepared for Epstein's 50th birthday in 2003. The US Congress later made the letter public after subpoenaing records from Epstein's estate.
Ruling
Ruling a major setback for Trump's administration
Attorneys for The Wall Street Journal and Murdoch had asked Judge Gayles to rule that the statements in the article were true and therefore not defamatory. However, Gayles ruled that "whether President Trump was the author of the Letter or Epstein's friend are questions of fact that cannot be determined at this stage of the litigation." This ruling is a major setback for Trump's administration as it tries to deal with fallout from its release of Epstein files.
Response
We stand behind the rigor and accuracy of reporting: WSJ
A spokesperson for Dow Jones, publisher of The Wall Street Journal, said they were "pleased" with the judge's decision. The representative added, "We stand behind the reliability, rigor and accuracy of The Wall Street Journal's reporting."