Federal Judge Darrin Gales has finally dismissed US President Donald Trump's $10 billion lawsuit against the “Wall Street Journal“, its publisher Dow Jones, News Corp. and Rupert Murdoch. The lawsuit was filed over the publication of a letter that the publication said bore Trump's name and was included in a 2003 album for Jeffrey Epstein's 50th birthday.
The ruling is a final dismissal of the proceedings. This means the lawsuit cannot be refiled. Judge Gales ruled that Trump's legal team failed to prove the standard required for a defamation case - that the defendants knew what was published was false or acted with reckless disregard for the truth.
What Trump Claimed
The president denies writing or signing the letter and calls it a forgery. According to the Wall Street Journal, the text contained a few typewritten lines surrounded by the outline of a naked woman and signed at the bottom with the name "Donald". The letter ended with the words: "Happy birthday - and may every day be another wonderful secret".
Trump filed the lawsuit in July 2025 against Dow Jones, News Corp., Murdoch, the CEO of News Corp. Robert Thomson and journalists Khadija Safdar and Joseph Palazzolo. He accused the defendants of knowingly and recklessly publishing false and defamatory statements that caused him financial and reputational harm.
The court's reasons
In his decision, Gales said that the lawsuit attempts to "fabricate" shortcomings in journalistic investigation. "The amended complaint fails to meet the standard for proving malicious intent," the judge wrote. According to him, the allegations of intent are general, vague, sometimes contradictory, and do not show that the defendants knew about the alleged falsehood of the publication.
The court also noted that the journalists sought comment from Trump and indicated his denial in the article. According to Gales, this refutes the thesis that the publication ignored information that did not match its version. The judge determined such a requirement to be inconsistent with the protection of freedom of the press under the First Amendment of the US Constitution.
The initial lawsuit was dismissed in April 2026, but Trump was given the opportunity to file an amended version. After the retrial, the court ruled to permanently dismiss the case against the “Wall Street Journal“ and its associated defendants.
Sources: news.bg, apnews.com, fidelity.com