Trump WSJ lawsuit over Epstein story dismissed for now

A US judge has dismissed Donald Trump’s defamation lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal over an article that claimed the US president’s name was included in a 2003 birthday celebration for late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, but said Trump could reopen the case.

Miami-based U.S. District Judge Darrin Gayles said Trump did not meet the “actual malice” standard that public figures must make clear for defamation.

This means they must prove not only that a public statement about them was false, but also that the media outlet or the person making the statement knew or should have known that it was false.

“This complaint does not even come close to that standard,” Gayles wrote.

“On the contrary.”

WSJ reporters reached out to Trump in advance for comment and printed his denial, the judge wrote.

The judge said this allowed readers to decide for themselves what to conclude and refuted Trump’s claim that the newspaper acted with actual malice.

Gayles said Trump could file an amended version of the lawsuit by April 27.

In his lawsuit against the WSJ and Rupert Murdoch, Trump described the alleged birthday celebration as “fake” and demanded US$10 billion ($A14 billion) for what he described as damage to his reputation.

WSJ’s parent company, News Corp’s Dow Jones, defended the accuracy of its July 17, 2025 article.