US judge dismisses $10bn Trump defamation suit against Wall Street Journal

Florida Judge Dismisses Trump’s $10 Billion Defamation Case Against Wall Street Journal

In a recent decision, a federal court in Florida ruled to dismiss a high-profile defamation lawsuit brought by former President Donald Trump against the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and its parent company, News Corp., which is owned by Rupert Murdoch. The case, filed last summer, sought at least $10 billion in damages, alleging the newspaper defamed Trump in a July 17 report linking him to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The WSJ’s story detailed how Trump’s name appeared in a “birthday book” Epstein received in 2003, which included a drawing of a woman’s body. Trump’s legal team, speaking to CBS News—the BBC’s US news partner—announced plans to refile the suit, calling it a “powerhouse” case. The ruling, issued by US District Judge Darrin Gayles, stated Trump failed to demonstrate the WSJ acted with “actual malice,” a critical standard for defamation claims in the United States.

“Trump came nowhere close to showing the WSJ published the article with actual malice,” Gayles emphasized in his decision. The case was dismissed without prejudice, granting Trump until April 27 to submit an amended lawsuit.

Trump’s lawyer argued the WSJ’s reporting was part of a broader effort to spread “Fake News” and mislead the public. The legal threshold for “actual malice” requires defendants to prove the statement was false and that the publisher knew or should have known of its falsity, or acted with reckless disregard.

Weeks after the WSJ’s exclusive report, Democratic lawmakers shared an image of the birthday note on social media, coinciding with the release of additional Epstein-related documents. Although the newspaper did not initially publish the note, its written description aligned perfectly with the image lawmakers later released. Trump denied authorship of the drawing, calling the entire report a “fake thing.”