ALBAWABA — U.S. President Donald Trump wants to stop the BBC from questioning members of his family as his $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the British broadcaster proceeds toward trial.
Trump's lawyers have requested a federal judge to stop the BBC from trying to get testimony and records from his daughter Ivanka Trump, her husband Jared Kushner and his oldest son Donald Trump Jr.
The inclusion of Trump’s relatives was unwarranted, his legal team said, and they accused the network of trying to obtain what they called a politically motivated advantage in the lawsuit.
BBC Requests Testimony From Trump’s Family
The BBC has asked for permission to serve the subpoenas to the three family members via registered mail, after failing to serve them in person.
A process server tried to serve them at Ivanka Trump and Kushner’s home and Trump Tower in New York, according to court records.
Federal Judge Jeffrey Kuntz in Miami has not ruled immediately on the case. Trump nominated Kuntz to the federal bench and the matter was just assigned to him after another judge set a February trial date.
It’s the speech on January 6. That’s the controversy.
Trump launched the defamation case in December, claiming the BBC had deceptively edited a speech he delivered on Jan. 6, 2021, before his followers stormed the U.S. Capitol.
The The lawsuit claims the broadcaster spliced together parts of the speech to change the context and intentionally distort Trump’s words.
The BBC has denied the charges.
$10 Billion on the Table
Trump is demanding $10 billion in damages, turning the row into a high-stakes legal battle between the US president and one of the world’s biggest public broadcasters.
The recent struggle over subpoenas adds another wrinkle to the case as both parties gear up for the trial date with Trump trying to keep his personal family out of the discovery process.
