US judge rejects BBC bid to dismiss Trump defamation case

A federal judge has allowed US President Donald Trump’s multibillion-dollar defamation suit against the BBC to proceed, rejecting a bid by the British broadcaster to dismiss the case.

Trump has accused the BBC of deceptively editing a documentary to make it seem as if he was inciting violence when he told supporters to march on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.

He has sought at least US$5 billion each for one claim of defamation and a separate claim under a Florida consumer protection law.

US District Judge Jeffrey T. Kuntz on Tuesday rejected the BBC’s bid to dismiss the defamation suit, but threw out the Florida protection law claim.

A spokesperson for the BBC said in a brief statement that the broadcaster was “surprised” but respected the court’s authority.

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“We are surprised by this decision but respect the Court’s authority and note the case will now proceed to the next stage.

“We remain confident in our position and will continue to respond through the proper legal process. It would be inappropriate to comment further while proceedings are ongoing.”

Trump, in a Truth Social post, hailed the judge’s ruling as “A Huge Victory.”

“We will continue fighting against, and defeating, all of those who try to deceive the American People!” he added.

The BBC documentary at issue spliced together two separate sections of Trump’s speech on January 6, 2021, making it appear that he had explicitly urged supporters to attack the US Capitol.

While the broadcaster has apologised for the incident, which prompted the resignation of multiple senior executives including BBC director general Tim Davie, it has denied causing Trump any real injury.

In a 40-page ruling, Kuntz wrote: “Whether President Trump can prove these claims and establish he sustained damages at summary judgment or trial is left for another day.”

He added: “Given the time disparity between the two statements, the distance itself tends towards a plausible inference that BBC knew or should have known that the segment they were creating would not and could not have been a truthful statement.”

“This was not trimming around the edges but creating something different than what was stated in the speech.”

Last month, Trump faced a setback in the case when a magistrate judge ordered him to give a deposition by December 11, after the BBC claimed he was dodging their efforts to get sworn testimony.

Trump risks sanctions if he fails to attend the deposition by then, including the potential dismissal of his lawsuit, the court said.