BBC requests testimony from Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner and Donald Trump Jr. in defamation lawsuit
Select a version of the text written from a presumed ideological perspective. This is not the original text, but a hypothetical version — how someone with that viewpoint might have phrased it. Tapping the current version again will return to the original or select cleaned version.
The BBC asked a Florida federal court to compel subpoenas for Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner and Donald Trump Jr., alleging they possess personal knowledge and records relevant to President Donald Trump's $10 billion defamation claim over a documentary edit of his Jan. 6 speech.
Lawyers for the British broadcaster have asked a federal court in Florida to allow subpoenas for Ivanka Trump, her husband Jared Kushner and Donald Trump Jr., arguing that the three have personal knowledge and may hold records pertinent to President Donald Trump’s $10 billion defamation lawsuit. The suit, filed in December, accuses the BBC of editing a 2024 documentary that combined separate excerpts of Trump’s Jan. 6, 2021 speech, allegedly misrepresenting his remarks and seeking to influence the 2024 presidential election.
The BBC says it has apologized for the edit but denies that it defamed Trump. In its filing, the broadcaster notes that both Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump were present in the Oval Office while Trump was revising the speech, and that Donald Trump Jr. spoke with his father after the Capitol violence began. The filing contends that this proximity gives the family members knowledge relevant to Trump’s claim that the documentary falsely implied he incited the Jan. 6 attack.
Because the three individuals are protected by Secret Service and other security personnel, the BBC has been unable to serve the subpoenas. The broadcaster requested that the court permit service by email and certified mail, or that Trump authorize service on behalf of his daughter and son-in-law, but Trump’s team declined. The judge has given Trump’s lawyers until Friday to respond.
"The BBC is simply trying to distract away from their own obvious liability," the Trump legal team said.
"The BBC intentionally defamed President Donald J. Trump, and now the BBC is seeking to harass him, his family, and supporters by abusing the deposition process," the team added.
A provisional trial date has been set for February. Earlier, a Florida judge temporarily halted an order requiring Trump to disclose financial details of his business empire while the court reviews an amended complaint that narrows the alleged damages to business and reputation.