Trump refiles $10 billion defamation lawsuit against WSJ

U.S. President Donald Trump has refiled a defamation lawsuit seeking at least $10 billion in damages against The Wall Street Journal, following a court decision that dismissed an earlier version of the case over legal deficiencies.

The amended complaint, filed on May 28 in federal court in Miami, again targets the Rupert Murdoch-owned newspaper and its parent company Dow Jones, along with News Corp and CEO Robert Thomson, as well as reporters Khadeeja Safdar and Joseph Palazzolo, Reuters reports. 

The lawsuit centers on a report describing a birthday card allegedly sent to deceased financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, which the article said bore Trump’s signature. Trump and his legal team have rejected the claim, calling the card fake, even after it was released by lawmakers investigating Epstein’s case.

“At the time of publication, Defendants recklessly disregarded whether the Defamatory Statements were true and/or they purposefully avoided the discovery of the truth,” Trump’s lawyers wrote in the amended complaint.

The filing alleges that the reporting caused “overwhelming” financial and reputational harm and repeats the demand for at least $10 billion in damages.

Dow Jones has said it stands by its reporting, stating it has “full confidence in the rigor and accuracy of the Journal’s reporting” and will “vigorously defend” the lawsuit.

U.S. District Court Judge Darrin P. Gayles dismissed Trump’s original complaint in April, finding that it failed to meet the “actual malice” standard required for defamation claims involving public figures, which requires proof that statements were knowingly false or made with reckless disregard for the truth.

Epstein, a financier who was convicted of sex offences, died in a New York jail in 2019. His case has continued to generate public and political controversy in the United States.

Trump has previously said he severed ties with Epstein before the financier’s legal troubles became public in 2006.

The lawsuit is part of a series of legal actions Trump has brought against media organisations, including The New York Times, the BBC, and the Des Moines Register, all of which have denied wrongdoing.

The Trump administration has also faced criticism from media groups over press access policies, which critics say could restrict coverage of government agencies, while the White House maintains that press access has been expanded under Trump’s leadership.

By Sabina Mammadli