{"id":7998811,"date":"2026-04-13T06:43:29","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T13:43:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thewrap.com\/?p=7998811"},"modified":"2026-04-13T08:52:02","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T15:52:02","slug":"judge-dismisses-trump-wall-street-journal-lawsuit-epstein","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thewrap.com\/industry-news\/business\/judge-dismisses-trump-wall-street-journal-lawsuit-epstein\/","title":{"rendered":"Judge Dismisses Trump\u2019s Lawsuit Against the Wall Street Journal, Rupert Murdoch Over Epstein Reporting"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n

A federal judge dismissed President Donald Trump\u2019s lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal, its parent company Dow Jones and owner Rupert Murdoch on Monday, finding<\/a> that the complaint came \u201cnowhere close\u201d to establishing that journalists acted with actual malice in their reporting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump filed a defamation suit<\/a> in July 2025 against the Journal over its article detailing his ties to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, including a lewd birthday card with the president\u2019s signature. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

‘\u201cI look forward to getting Rupert Murdoch to testify in my lawsuit against him and his ‘pile of garbage’ newspaper, the WSJ,\u201d Trump wrote<\/a>. \u201cThat will be an interesting experience!!!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In September, the House Oversight Committee released<\/a> the birthday book in question, with an alleged Trump signature. Trump has denied signing it.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n\t
\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"President\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\tRead Next<\/strong>
\n\t\t\tRupert Murdoch Built Donald Trump. Now He's Standing Up to Him<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The judge did not rule as to whether the signature was legitimate or not, but concluded that the Journal\u2019s reporters did not act with reckless disregard for the truth or with actual malice, the standard for defamation cases. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTo establish actual malice, ‘a plaintiff must show the defendant deliberately
avoided investigating the veracity of the statement in order to evade learning the truth,\u201d wrote Darrin P. Gayles, a U.S. District Court judge in Florida. \u201cThe Complaint comes nowhere close to this standard.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cQuite the opposite,\u201d he continued. \u201cThe Article explains that, before running the story, Defendants contacted President Trump, Justice Department officials, and the FBI for comment. President Trump responded with his denial, the
Justice Department did not respond at all, and the FBI declined to comment. In short, the Complaint and Article confirm that Defendants attempted to investigate.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPresident Trump will follow Judge Gayles\u2019s ruling and guidance to refile this powerhouse lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal and all of the other Defendants,\u201d a spokesman for President Trump\u2019s legal team said in a statement. \u201cThe President will continue to hold accountable those who traffic in Fake News to mislead the American People.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are pleased with the judge\u2019s decision to dismiss this complaint,\u201d a Dow Jones spokesperson said. \u201cWe stand behind the reliability, rigor and accuracy of The Wall Street Journal’s reporting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since returning to office last year, Trump has also sued the New York Times and BBC. <\/p>\n\n\n

\n\t
\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"President\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\tRead Next<\/strong>
\n\t\t\tTrump Agrees to Delay Rupert Murdoch's Deposition Over WSJ, Epstein Libel Lawsuit<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A federal judge found Trump\u2019s complaint came \u201cnowhere close\u201d to meeting the standard of actual malice <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10249,"featured_media":7995176,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"byline":{"profiles":[{"type":"byline_id","atts":{"term_id":513605,"post_id":7865033}}]},"_links_to":"","_links_to_type":0,"nb_breaking_email_type":"b8b5eaae-7af7-4a7d-8ff2-8ed7e2f9029d","nb_breaking_template":"single-story.html","nb_breaking_from_name":"TheWrap","nb_breaking_subject":"","nb_breaking_preview":"","nb_breaking_list":[],"nb_breaking_header_img":7555420,"nb_breaking_should_send":false,"nb_breaking_content":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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\"WrapPRO<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Discover why entertainment executives and professionals rely on the WrapPRO platform daily for exclusive coverage, analysis, deeper reporting, and access to VIP events & screenings throughout the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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