Judge dismisses Trump suit against Wall Street Journal over Epstein letter

Politics Judge dismisses Trump suit against Wall Street Journal over Epstein birthday letter for now By Stefan Becket, Stefan Becket Managing Editor, Digital Politics Stefan Becket is a managing editor of politics for CBSNews.com. Stefan has covered national politics for more than a decade and helps oversee a team covering the White House, Congress, the Supreme Court, immigration and federal law enforcement. Read Full Bio Stefan Becket, Jacob Rosen Jacob Rosen Justice Department Reporter Jake Rosen is a reporter covering the Department of Justice. He was previously a campaign digital reporter covering President Trump's 2024 campaign and also served as an associate producer for "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan." Read Full Bio Jacob Rosen Updated on: April 13, 2026 / 10:09 AM EDT / CBS News Add CBS News on Google A federal judge in Miami handed President Trump a defeat in his defamation lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal over a story about a birthday book for Jeffrey Epstein, saying the president's legal team failed to clear the legal bar needed to bring the case.In a 17-page ruling, Judge Darrin Gayles of the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of Florida ruled that the president came "nowhere close" to showing the paper acted with "actual malice" towards him, the standard for bringing a defamation suit as a public figure. Actual malice requires that plaintiffs prove that statements made about a public figure were published with the knowledge that they were knowingly false, or with disregard over whether they are true or not."Because President Trump has not plausibly alleged that Defendants published the Article with actual malice, both Counts must be dismissed," Gayles wrote. However, the judge said Mr. Trump can refile the case by April 27 to amend the complaint and allege the paper acted with actual malice.Gayles added that Mr. Trump's "conclusory allegation" in the complaint — that the Journal "had contradictory evidence and fa...