Judge Orders Trump to Sit for Deposition by Dec. 11 in $10 Billion BBC Defamation Lawsuit
A federal judge set a December 11 deadline for President Trump to answer questions under oath in his $10 billion defamation case against the BBC over a misleadingly edited January 6 speech clip.
A federal judge on Thursday ordered President Donald Trump to sit for a deposition by December 11 in his $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the BBC, after the broadcaster accused him of stalling to avoid answering questions under oath, the Associated Press reported.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Enjolique Lett issued the order from the bench at a hearing in Florida, where Trump filed the suit in December. Trump had been scheduled for a deposition in October but canceled it, his lawyers citing conflicts with his presidential duties.
The suit targets a BBC documentary that aired before the 2024 election. Trump alleges the program spliced together different parts of his January 6, 2021 speech, making it appear he directed supporters to storm the U.S. Capitol. The BBC has admitted the edits were misleading and apologized, while denying liability for defamation.
A fight over discovery
The case has moved into a dispute over discovery. The BBC has accused Trump and his lawyers of dragging their feet on records requests, and the broadcaster is seeking financial documents from Mar-a-Lago and the network of business entities connected to him, saying the material is needed to defend against his damages claims.
Trump’s lawyers have called those requests too broad and irrelevant, and denied in court filings that he is avoiding a deposition, saying his duties and security needs must take priority.
The suit is one of several Trump has filed against news organizations. The edited clip also surfaced in a leaked internal BBC memo describing the edits as evidence of potential political bias, a disclosure that set off a public relations crisis at the broadcaster and led to high-level resignations.
Reporting based on coverage by Reuters.
