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A US judge has ordered Donald Trump to appear before BBC lawyers before the end of the year, as part of the US president’s $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the channel.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Enjoliqué Lett ruled Thursday that Trump must answer questions from the BBC by Dec. 11 in his trial over a Panoramica documentary about the 2021 Capitol riot that edited parts of his speech to his supporters.
A spokesperson for Trump’s legal team said in a statement that the BBC had a “long pattern of misleading its audiences” in its coverage of the president. “President Trump’s lawsuit holds the BBC accountable for its defamation and reckless election interference, just as it has held other major fake news outlets accountable for their wrongdoing.”
BBC executives are increasingly frustrated by what they see as a delaying tactic by the president, according to people familiar with the matter. Trump’s lawyers said he was too busy to appear in court until next year.
BBC lawyers said in court filings that Trump’s deposition was originally scheduled for Oct. 16 but less than a month before, his lawyer said “matters of national importance” had made the president unavailable.
That day, Trump attended a political rally in Georgia in support of the state’s Republican candidates, prompting the BBC to ask the judge to force Trump to set a new date for his questioning.
The British company is pushing to have the case thrown out on jurisdictional grounds – arguing that it was never presented in the United States or Florida, where the case is being heard – which could be ruled on before the president reaches court.
The BBC declined to comment. Lawyers for the broadcaster did not respond to requests for comment.
Trump’s deposition deadline could be pushed back if the discovery period – during which lawyers exchange documents and other evidence – is extended beyond December 18. The questioning could then be pushed back until January, when Trump’s lawyers said in court filings that the president would be available.
The lawsuit stems from a documentary released in 2024 that spliced together separate sections of Trump’s Jan. 6, 2021, speech, creating the impression that he directly encouraged his supporters to storm the U.S. Capitol. The BBC apologized.
The case is part of a broader legal offensive by Trump against media organizations. The president won settlements from CBS and ABC, although other suits, including the one against CNN, were dismissed.
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