Trump Reopens $10B Lawsuit Against WSJ Over Epstein Report

By Staff, Agencies

US President Donald Trump has refiled a defamation lawsuit seeking at least $10 billion in damages against the Wall Street Journal over its reporting on his ties to Jeffrey Epstein, following a court decision that dismissed an earlier version of the case due to legal deficiencies.

The lawsuit is one of several the US president has brought in his personal capacity against news organisations and is part of what critics say is a wider pressure campaign against the media.

Trump’s lawsuit, filed on Wednesday, claimed the Rupert Murdoch-owned newspaper tarnished his reputation with an article describing a birthday card to the disgraced financier and sex offender Epstein as bearing Trump’s signature. Trump and his lawyers said the card was fake, even after it was released by lawmakers investigating Epstein’s case.

Trump is seeking at least $10bn in damages, according to the amended lawsuit. He had sought the same amount previously.

“At the time of publication, defendants recklessly disregarded whether the defamatory statements were true and/or they purposefully avoided the discovery of the truth,” lawyers for Trump wrote in the amended complaint.

The lawsuit, filed in Miami federal court, names Rupert Murdoch, Dow Jones, News Corp and its CEO, Robert Thomson, along with two Wall Street Journal reporters, Khadeeja Safdar and Joseph Palazzolo, as defendants, saying they defamed Trump and caused him to suffer “overwhelming” financial and reputational harm.

Dow Jones has said it has full confidence in the rigour and accuracy of the WSJ’s reporting and will vigorously defend the lawsuit.

Epstein, who died in a New York jail in 2019, sparked conspiracy theories among Trump’s supporters over alleged ties to the powerful. Trump, who claims he cut ties with Epstein in 2006, had his first defamation lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal dismissed in April by Judge Darrin P. Gayles, who ruled he failed to prove “actual malice.”

Trump has also filed defamation lawsuits against several media organisations, including The New York Times, the BBC, and the Des Moines Register, all of which deny wrongdoing and are contesting the cases.

His administration has also faced legal challenges over efforts to restrict press access and pressure critical outlets through regulatory measures.