Donald Trump’s $10billion defamation lawsuit towards BBC over doctored speech on Panorama is ready for trial in Florida in February subsequent yr
A judge in Florida has set a trial date in US President Donald Trump‘s $10billion defamation lawsuit against the BBC over a Panorama programme.
Court documents from the US District Court Southern District of Florida show judge Roy K Altman set a trial date of February 15 next year.
Panorama faced criticism last year over an episode in 2024 for giving the impression Mr Trump had encouraged his supporters to storm the Capitol building in 2021.
In the episode, a clip from Mr Trump’s speech on January 6 that year was spliced to show him saying: ‘We’re going to walk down to the Capitol… and I’ll be there with you. And we fight. We fight like hell.’
Now, the court order, made yesterday, said: ‘This matter is set for trial during the Court’s two-week trial calendar beginning February 15, 2027. Counsel for all parties shall also appear at a calendar call at 1.45pm on February 9, 2027.
‘Unless instructed otherwise by subsequent order, the trial and all other proceedings in this case shall be conducted in Courtroom 12-4 at the Wilkie D. Ferguson, Jr. U.S. Courthouse, 400 N. Miami Avenue, Miami, Florida 33128.’
Mr Trump is seeking up to $10billion (£7.5 billion) in damages in response to the editing of the speech, with his lawyers claiming it was ‘false and defamatory’.
The President’s lawyers have also said ‘the BBC intentionally and maliciously sought to fully mislead its viewers around the world’.
President Donald Trump speaks during an event on coal power at the White House yesterday
The trial will take place at the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. US Federal Courthouse in Miami (pictured)
The lawsuit is seeking damages on two counts: for an allegation of defamation, and for a violation of the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.
The complaint from Mr Trump’s legal team has alleged there is ‘substantial evidence’ that demonstrates the BBC and its leadership ‘bore President Trump ill will, wanted him to lose the 2024 presidential election, and were dishonest in their coverage of him’, before the publication of the Panorama documentary.
The BBC last month filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, claiming the court lacks ‘personal jurisdiction’ over them, the venue is ‘improper’ and Mr Trump ‘failed to state a claim’.
The corporation also argued that it did not create, produce or broadcast the documentary in Florida and that Mr Trump’s claim that the documentary was available in the US on streaming service BritBox is not true.
It additionally claimed that the President failed to ‘plausibly allege’ the BBC published the documentary with ‘actual malice’, which public officials are required to show when filing suit for defamation in the US.
More to follow
