Judge dismisses Trump's billion-dollar suit against Wall Street Journal

A federal judge in Miami dismissed a $10 billion lawsuit filed by Donald Trump against The Wall Street Journal on Saturday. The ruling permanently ends the legal challenge, a move that closes a major front in the president's disputes with news organizations.

U.S. District Judge Darrin Gayles issued the decision with prejudice, meaning the case cannot be refiled. Gayles determined that Trump did not provide sufficient evidence that the newspaper and its owner, Rupert Murdoch, acted with actual malice. The judge noted that the complaint tried to manufacture flaws in the investigative reporting rather than prove the legal standard required for public figures.

The legal battle centers on a story published last year about a sexually suggestive letter and drawing. The paper reported that the items bore Trump's name and appeared in a 2003 album created for Jeffrey Epstein's 50th birthday. Ghislaine Maxwell, the disgraced socialite, reportedly collected the letter for that album. The text was framed by a hand-drawn outline of a naked woman and closed with the phrase, Happy Birthday, and may every day be another wonderful secret.

Trump has consistently denied writing the letter. He described the reporting as false, malicious, and defamatory in his legal filings. The original suit accused the Journal's reporters of knowingly and recklessly publishing false statements. The complaint alleged that the coverage caused overwhelming financial and reputational harm to the president.

This is the second time Gayles has ruled against the administration in this matter. In April, the judge dismissed the initial version of the suit, granting Trump the opportunity to file an amended complaint. He submitted that revised version in May. In Saturday's ruling, Gayles referenced the 1964 Supreme Court decision in New York Times Co. v. Sullivan. That precedent requires media outlets to show reckless disregard for the truth when public figures sue for libel.

The judge wrote that the amended complaint fell short of pleading actual malice. He found the allegations regarding malice to be conclusory and vague. Some of the claims were inconsistent with the article itself. The court also observed that the Journal did not ignore Trump's denial of authorship. Instead, the story informed readers that the president decried the letter as a fake and denied writing it.

The dismissal adds to a growing list of legal and public conflicts between the White House and the press during the second term. Beyond the Journal, the administration is involved in litigation with the BBC, The Associated Press, CNN, MS NOW, and Politico. The latter group recently sued for restored access after the president banished them from the White House in mid-September. Trump has frequently labeled critical outlets as fake news and insulted their journalists.

The White House did not issue an immediate public reaction to the ruling. It also did not respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press. Epstein died by suicide in a New York jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.