A federal magistrate judge in Miami has ordered President Trump to sit for a sworn deposition in his defamation lawsuit against the BBC by December 11, warning that missing the deadline could trigger sanctions as severe as dismissal of the case.
US Magistrate Judge Enjoliqué Lett issued the order after lawyers for the BBC told the court that two months remained in the discovery period and Trump had still not completed a deposition. Trump had cancelled a previously scheduled session on October 16, citing "matters of national importance"; a BBC lawyer, Charles Tobin, told the court that Trump had instead been campaigning in Georgia that day and "prioritised that" over answering questions.
A year-old lawsuit over an edited speech
Trump sued the BBC in Florida last December, seeking $10 billion over a Panorama documentary that spliced together two separate portions of the speech he gave outside the US Capitol on January 6, 2021. His suit accuses the broadcaster of "intentionally, maliciously and deceptively doctoring" the footage. The BBC has apologised, acknowledging the edit created "the mistaken impression" that Trump had made a direct call for violent action, but it disputes that the error meets the legal bar for defamation and has asked the court to dismiss the case, noting the documentary was never broadcast in the US. Trump later dropped a related claim against the BBC's commercial arm, BBC Studios, after it argued it had no role in producing the programme.
In a filing this week, Trump's lawyers proposed he appear for deposition between January 11 and 22 — after the court-ordered deadline — and argued the BBC was "wrong to claim" he was avoiding testimony. A deposition, conducted out of court under oath and recorded by a court reporter, can later be used as evidence at trial.
The case is being watched closely on both sides of the Atlantic; a separate newsroom's account of the same ruling likewise notes the December 11 deadline now looming over discovery.
What happens next
If Trump again fails to appear, the BBC's lawyers are expected to renew their request for sanctions, which could range from cost penalties to dismissal of Trump's claims outright. The broadcaster, for its part, continues to press its defence that the documentary's limited US availability undercuts the suit's core allegation of American harm.
