Judge tosses Trump's lawsuit against WSJ over Epstein letter

A federal judge on Monday tossed a defamation lawsuit filed by President Trump against the https://www.axios.com/2025/07/18/trump-epstein-wsj-murdoch-sue-letter" target="_blank">Wall Street Journal over a https://www.wsj.com/politics/trump-jeffrey-epstein-birthday-letter-we-have-certain-things-in-common-f918d796?mod=hp_lead_pos7" target="_blank">story describing a "bawdy" birthday letter bearing the president's name that was reportedly given to Jeffrey Epstein.

Why it matters: The ruling maintains the https://www.axios.com/2025/03/24/supreme-court-nyt-sullivan-press-freedom-steve-wynn" target="_blank">very high bar for proving defamation of public figures in U.S. courts.

• It also serves as another example of a high-profile case against the media that the president has lost in his second term.

Zoom in: In his https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/28038159-41326-order-dismissing-trump-lawsuit-against-wsj/?q=comes+nowhere+close&mode=document#document/p14" target="_blank">ruling, U.S. District Judge Darrin P. Gayles said the complaint "comes nowhere close" to the actual malice standard used to determine whether a high-profile figure has been defamed, and is "Quite the opposite."

• Trump's complaint, which details that the Journal asked him for comment, and the article itself "confirm that Defendants attempted to investigate," Gayles notes.
• "Accordingly, President Trump's conclusory allegation that Defendants had contradictory evidence and failed to investigate is rebutted by the Article and is insufficient to establish actual malice."
• A spokesperson for the president's legal team said they intend to refile the lawsuit.

  Gayles set a deadline of April 27 for an amended complaint.

• A Dow Jones spokesperson said the company is pleased with the judge's decision. "We stand behind the reliability, rigor and accuracy of The Wall Street Journal's reporting," they said.

Catch up quick: President Trump https://www.axios.com/2025/07/18/wall-street-journal-trump-epstein-letter" target="_blank">sued the Journal last summer for defamation over the story.

• Defendants included the Journal's parent Dow Jones and its parent News Corp. as well as Rupert Murdoch, News Corp.

  CEO Robert Thomson and the journalists who wrote the story.

• President Trump sought $20 billion in damages.
• The Journal filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit last September.

The big picture: The president and his administration have a losing track record when it comes to legal entanglements with the media.

• The New York Times vs.

  U.S. Department of Defense: A federal judge last month https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.287334/gov.uscourts.dcd.287334.35.0_1.pdf" target="_blank">ruled the Pentagon's restrictions on journalists were a First Amendment violation, marking a win for the New York Times which had https://www.axios.com/2025/12/04/new-york-times-pentagon-lawsuit-press-policy" target="_blank">sued over the issue in December.

• The same judge said last week that the Pentagon is https://apnews.com/article/pentagon-press-nyt-new-york-times-access-6487d7bf4a4a87ad1bf9864a275b5239%20" target="_blank">violating his court order to restore access to reporters.
• Voice of America employees vs. the Trump administration: A federal judge sided with VOA employees in a lawsuit against the Trump administration last month and https://www.politico.com/news/2026/03/17/voice-of-america-back-to-work-00833388" target="_blank">ordered the reinstatement of more than 1,000 VOA employees.
• President Donald J. Trump vs.

  CNN: A federal judge https://www.npr.org/2023/07/30/1190983801/a-federal-judge-has-dismissed-trumps-defamation-case-against-cnn-over-the-big-li" target="_blank">dismissed Trump's defamation case against CNN in 2023, and subsequent efforts to revive the case have https://www.ms.now/deadline-white-house/deadline-legal-blog/trump-cnn-defamation-lawsuit-appeal" target="_blank">failed.

• President Donald J. Trump vs. the New York Times: A judge tossed Trump's lawsuit against the https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/03/nyregion/donald-trump-new-york-times-lawsuit.html" target="_blank">Times over a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation into his finances.
• President Donald J. Trump vs. the New York Times: Trump's most recent defamation suit against the Times was dismissed for being unnecessarily long.

  He has since https://www.axios.com/2025/10/17/trump-new-york-times-lawsuit-defamation-refiled" target="_blank">refiled.

• TMTG vs. multiple media outlets: TMTG dropped a https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-truth-social-suing-media-false-report-73-million-loss-2023-11" target="_blank">defamation suit against more than a dozen media outlets, including Axios, Forbes and Reuters.

  TMTG later refiled the case.

• Trump campaign vs. the New York Times: A state court dismissed a https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/09/business/media/trump-new-york-times-lawsuit-dismissed.html" target="_blank">defamation lawsuit filed by the reelection campaign of President Trump against the Times in 2019, ruling that opinion journalism was protected speech.

What to watch: There are two pending media cases worth watching.

1.

AP vs. the White House: A panel of federal judges is expected to rule on the Associated Press' lawsuit against the Trump administration this year.

• The lawsuit could set a precedent over whether the White House can block journalists' access to Air Force One and Oval Office events.

2.

President Trump vs.

BBC: President Trump https://www.axios.com/2025/12/16/trump-bbc-lawsuit-defamation-editing-jan-6-speech" target="_blank">sued the BBC for $10 billion last year alleging that a https://www.axios.com/2025/11/09/bbc-trump-speech-documentary-leaders-resign" target="_self">documentary defamed him by editing his speech from Jan. 6, 2021, in a misleading way.

• The BBC has tried to get the case dropped and has said it would fight the lawsuit.