Trump receives $15 million in ABC News libel lawsuit

 

Trump receives $15 million in ABC News libel lawsuit 

ABC News has consented to pay $15 million (£12 million) to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump to resolve a libel claim following remarks made by its prominent anchor who inaccurately asserted he had been deemed "liable for rape." 

George Stephanopoulos made these claims multiple times during an interview on March 10 of this year while questioning a congresswoman regarding her support for Trump. 

A jury in a civil trial last year ruled that Trump was liable for "sexual abuse," which carries a specific interpretation under New York legal standards. 

As part of the settlement announced on Saturday, which was initially reported by Fox News Digital, ABC will also release a statement conveying its "regret" for the remarks made by Stephanopoulos. As stipulated in the agreement, ABC News will donate $15 million to a "Presidential foundation and museum to be created by or for the Plaintiff, similar to those established in the past by Presidents of the United States." 

Additionally, the network has committed to pay $1 million towards Trump's legal expenses. 

Under the terms of the settlement, the network will publish an editor's note at the end of its March 10, 2024, online news article regarding the story. 

It will state: "ABC News and George Stephanopoulos regret statements concerning President Donald J. Trump made during an interview conducted by George Stephanopoulos with Rep. Nancy Mace on ABC's This Week on March 10, 2024." 

An ABC News representative indicated in a statement that the organization was "glad that the parties have agreed to settle the lawsuit on the terms outlined in the court filing." 

In 2023, a New York civil court determined that Trump sexually assaulted E. Jean Carroll in a fitting room at a department store in 1996. He was also found liable for defaming the magazine writer. 

Judge Lewis Kaplan remarked that the jury's finding was that Ms. Carroll had not established that Trump had raped her "within the narrow, technical understanding of a specific section of the New York Penal Law." 

Judge Kaplan emphasized that the legal definition of rape was "far narrower" than how rape is usually defined in contemporary language, in some dictionaries, and within criminal laws in other jurisdictions. 

In a separate case, also overseen by the same judge, a jury mandated that Trump pay $83.3 million to Ms. Carroll for further defamatory remarks. During the March 10 broadcast, Stephanopoulos inquired of South Carolina Republican congresswoman Nancy Mace how she could endorse Trump. 

The anchor incorrectly claimed that "judges and two distinct juries have found him liable for rape." 

Stephanopoulos reiterated this assertion ten times throughout the broadcast. 

Prior to the ruling, a federal magistrate judge had mandated Trump and Stephanopoulos to provide sworn testimony at depositions the following week. 

Trump has also initiated a lawsuit against CBS, the BBC's U.S. affiliate, for "deceptive conduct" related to an interview with Kamala Harris. 

In 2023, a judge dismissed his defamation lawsuit against CNN, where he contended that the network had compared him to Adolf Hitler. 

He has also seen lawsuits lodged against the New York Times and the Washington Post rejected.