Judge orders Trump to give BBC deposition by December 11 or face sanctions
A US judge has ordered Donald Trump to answer questions under oath by December 11 in his $10bn defamation lawsuit against the BBC, with sanctions possible if he fails.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
A US federal judge has ordered Donald Trump to sit for a deposition by December 11 in his $10bn defamation lawsuit against the BBC. The order came at a hearing in Miami, Florida, in the discovery phase of the case. If Trump fails to comply, the judge has warned of sanctions, with dismissal of the lawsuit the most extreme option.
The BBC asked the court to compel Trump to appear after he cancelled an agreed deposition date of October 16. BBC lawyer Charles Tobin said Trump had cited matters of national importance, but that he was in fact campaigning for midterm elections in Georgia that day. The judge said the deposition must be videotaped, though it is likely to be seen only by lawyers rather than released publicly.
The judge also criticised Trump's lawyers for not disclosing documents quickly enough. The court said the case could be thrown out if they did not do so within 30 days. A provisional date for a two-week trial has been set for February.
Trump filed the lawsuit last December. He is seeking $10bn in damages and accuses the BBC of defamation and deceptive and unfair trade practices over the documentary Trump A Second Chance. The case concerns a Panorama programme and a misleading edit of a speech Trump gave on January 6, 2021. The BBC has apologised for the misleading edit but denies defaming him.
Trump left without saying anything about the BBC. He has resisted the deposition process, and the BBC had accused him of foot-dragging. The judge's deadline now puts the case on a stricter timetable. Trump has given depositions before, including in a civil case brought by writer E Jean Carroll.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.
| Claim |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reported by all 3 channels | |||
| A federal judge ordered Trump to face a deposition by 11 December in the BBC defamation case and warned of sanctions if he did not comply. | |||
| Only on one channel | |||
| A BBC Panorama edit of a Trump speech is at issue in Trump's defamation case against the BBC. | Not reported by BBC One | Not reported by Sky News | |
| A lawyer said Trump was campaigning in Georgia for midterm elections on the day he was due to be deposed. | Not reported by ITV | Not reported by Sky News | |
| The BBC asked the court to compel Trump after he cancelled an agreed 16 October deposition date. | Not reported by BBC One | Not reported by ITV | |
| The BBC issued an apology over its misleading edit of Trump's January 6 2021 speech. | Not reported by BBC One | Not reported by Sky News | |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
Sky News treated the ruling as a short breaking news item. It focused on the deadline, the threat of sanctions and the $10bn damages claim, and it named the documentary at the centre of the case. It did not go into the Miami hearing, the videotaping order or the possible February trial date.
- “A federal judge in the United States has ordered President Trump to face questions by lawyers in a deposition in his defamation lawsuit against the BBC by the 11th of December.”
- “The judge has threatened sanctions if Mr Trump fails to comply with the court schedule.”
- “President Trump filed his lawsuit against the BBC last December seeking $10 billion in damages”
BBC ONE West gave the most detailed legal account across its two broadcasts. It explained the discovery hearing in Miami, the disputed 16 October date, Trump's campaign appearance in Georgia, the judge's sanctions warning, the videotaping requirement, criticism over document disclosure and a provisional February trial date. The tone was explanatory and correspondent-led, with a clear focus on what could happen next.
- “what has happened this morning is a hearing in Florida in Miami as part of that discovery process”
- “mr. Tobin went on to say that mr. Trump was in fact that day Campaigning for the midterm elections in Georgia”
- “the judge says that has to happen by December the 11th and crucially that it has to be videotaped”
ITV1 framed the order as an ultimatum to Trump and explained the background to the Panorama edit and the BBC apology. It put the case in the context of discovery, Trump's earlier deposition in the E Jean Carroll case and the risk of dismissal. Its tone was conversational and analytical, asking whether Trump would turn up.
- “it's not often anyone gives President Trump an ultimatum, but an American judge says that if the President wants to pursue his £7 billion defamation case against the BBC over a misleading edit in a Panorama programme, he needs to be interviewed under oath and soon by December 11th at the latest.”
- “a judge has ruled definitively that he must give this deposition by December 11th, or potentially face a sanction in this case, potentially have this case be dismissed completely.”
- “the BBC was forced to apologise for a misleading edit of a speech he gave on January 6th, 2021”
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.