Former President Donald Trump was ordered to pay the New York Times nearly $400,000 for filing a “frivolous” lawsuit against the newspaper over its award-winning report on his family’s sketchy tax practices.
The lawsuit against the newspaper and reporters Susanne Craig, David Barstow and Russell Buettner was dismissed in May after a judge ruled that their 2018 Pulitzer Prize-winning story was protected by the First Amendment.
“Today’s decision shows that the state’s newly amended anti-SLAPP statute can be a powerful force in protecting press freedom,” said Times spokeswoman Danielle Rhoades Ha, referring to a New York law that prohibits frivolous lawsuits. designed to silence critics.
“The court has sent a message to those who want to misuse the judicial system to try to silence journalists,” Rhoades Ha said.
On Friday, Donald Trump was ordered to pay $400,000 in legal fees to the New York Times. POOL/AFP via Getty Images
New York Judge Robert Reed said that given the “complexity of the issues” in the case and other factors, it was reasonable for Trump to be forced to pay the Times’ lawyers and journalists a total of $392,638 in legal fees. .
Trump, 77, filed the lawsuit in 2021, accusing the Times and his niece Mary Trump of conspiring an “insidious plot” to smuggle more than 100,000 pages of confidential financial documents from the family attorney to explore in their news articles and a book.
The 2018 story challenged his claims to his own wealth by documenting how his father, Fred Trump, had given him at least $413 million over decades, including through tax evasion schemes.
Trump would then go on to evade taxes on his own throughout his career by creating sham corporations to disguise monetary gifts and undervaluing assets to tax authorities, according to the report.
The newspaper and journalists Susanne Craig, David Barstow and Russell Buettner were dismissed from the lawsuit in May. AP Times reporting challenged Donald Trump’s claims of wealth by documenting how his father, Fred Trump, had given him at least $413 million over decades. John Nación/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
Immediately after losing the 2020 election, the former president claimed that his niece and the Times were motivated “by a personal vendetta and their desire to gain fame, notoriety, acclaim and a financial windfall and further intended to advance their agenda.” policy. “
One of the journalists, Craig, in a tweet on Friday celebrated the final victory against the “frivolous lawsuit filed against the newspaper, two of my colleagues and me.”
The lawsuit against the newspaper was dismissed in May, but Trump’s claim that Mary Trump, an outspoken critic of his uncle, violated an earlier settlement agreement by turning over tax records to journalists is still pending.
In a separate ruling Friday, Reed denied a request from Mary Trump to stay the case while she appeals his June decision that allowed Trump’s claim against her to proceed.
She filed a countersuit against Trump in July under New York’s anti-SLAPP law, arguing that Donald Trump’s lawsuit was “purely retaliatory and without merit” and was intended to “deter her and others from criticizing him in the future.” ”.
The former president’s lawyer, Alina Habba, said Trump and his team remain disappointed that the Times and its reporters were dropped from the lawsuit, but said they are pleased that the court has “once again affirmed the strength of our claims.” against Mary and is denying her attempt to avoid accountability.”
“We look forward to continuing our lawsuits against her,” Habba said.
With pole cables
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Source: vtt.edu.vn