BBC asks US court to compel Trump family testimony in $10 billion defamation suit
BBC seeks court help to obtain testimony and documents from three Trump family members in the president's $10 billion defamation lawsuit.
The BBC has petitioned a federal court in Florida for assistance in obtaining testimony and documents from three members of President Donald Trump's family as part of his $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the broadcaster.
In a filing made Friday, lawyers for the BBC argued that Ivanka Trump, her husband Jared Kushner, and Donald Trump Jr. possess "personal knowledge" and likely hold records relevant to the president's claims. The broadcaster stated it has been unable to serve subpoenas on the three individuals because they are protected by Secret Service and other security personnel.
Trump filed the lawsuit in December, accusing the BBC of defamation and deceptive trade practices. The case centers on a 2024 documentary that edited a speech Trump delivered on January 6, 2021, before the attack on the US Capitol. Trump's complaint alleges the BBC "splicing together two entirely separate parts" of the speech to misrepresent its meaning, calling the edit "a brazen attempt to interfere in and influence" the 2024 presidential election.
The BBC has apologized for the misleading edit but maintains it did not defame the president.
The latest filing contends the family members have knowledge relevant to Trump's argument that it would be "materially false to imply that he incited violence" that day. It notes that both Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump were present in the Oval Office while Trump was still revising the speech, and that Donald Trump Jr. spoke directly with his father after violence broke out at the Capitol.
The BBC says it asked Trump to accept subpoenas on behalf of his daughter and son-in-law or to direct the Secret Service to allow service, but he refused. The broadcaster has asked the court to permit service by email and certified mail.
The judge has given Trump's legal team until Friday to respond. Trump's lawyers called the BBC's request a distraction from its "own obvious liability," accusing the broadcaster of seeking to "harass" the president and his family by "abusing the deposition process."
A trial has been provisionally scheduled for February. Last week, a federal judge granted Trump a temporary reprieve from an order requiring him to disclose details of his business empire's financial performance, while considering an amended complaint that narrows his claim of damages to both business and reputation.