Trump Suffers Legal Setback as Court Rejects Lawsuit Over Epstein Birthday Book

A federal judge in the United States has dismissed President Donald Trump’s defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal and other defendants over the newspaper’s reporting on an alleged birthday letter linked to Jeffrey Epstein. The ruling marks a significant setback for Trump in his legal dispute with the media organisation.

Judge says Trump failed to meet legal standard
US District Judge Darrin Gayles, sitting in Miami, dismissed the lawsuit for a second time on Saturday, October 31, ruling that Trump’s amended complaint failed to adequately establish that the defendants acted with “actual malice.”

Under US defamation law, public figures generally must show that a publisher knowingly made a false statement or acted with reckless disregard for whether it was true. The judge concluded that Trump’s allegations did not meet this demanding legal threshold.

The case was dismissed with prejudice, meaning Trump cannot simply amend and refile the same lawsuit in the same court. The judge had previously dismissed the initial complaint in April 2026 but allowed the president to submit an amended version.
Dispute centres on alleged Epstein birthday letter

The legal battle began after the Wall Street Journal published a report in July 2025 about a birthday album prepared for Epstein’s 50th birthday in 2003. The newspaper reported that the album contained a letter bearing Trump’s name and featuring a suggestive drawing.

Trump denied writing the letter, described the reporting as false and defamatory, and pursued legal action against the newspaper’s publisher, Dow Jones, its parent company News Corp, media executive Rupert Murdoch and other individuals associated with the report.

The lawsuit sought billions of dollars in damages. The newspaper and its publisher defended their reporting and challenged the legal basis of Trump’s claims.
Newspaper welcomes ruling as Trump maintains his position
The judge’s decision represents a victory for the newspaper and its co-defendants in a high-profile dispute over press freedom, public accountability and the legal protections afforded to journalism.

Dow Jones welcomed the decision, while a spokesperson for Trump’s legal team said the president would continue pursuing his claims against those he believes misled the American public.

The case has attracted considerable attention because it involves a sitting US president, one of the country’s most influential media companies and reporting related to Epstein, whose associations with prominent figures have remained a subject of public scrutiny.

The ruling does not, by itself, establish whether the disputed letter was authentic. It addresses whether Trump’s complaint sufficiently alleged the legally required elements of defamation.