Trump BBC financial records subpoena narrowed by federal judge
A magistrate judge ordered Trump’s trust to turn over business records to the BBC, while limiting the subpoena to documents from 2023 onward.
By Georgia Hale · Staff Writer
3 min read
A federal magistrate judge has ordered the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust to hand over Trump BBC financial records as the broadcaster fights the president’s $10 billion defamation lawsuit.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Enjoliqué Aytch Lett granted part of the BBC’s request to force production of documents from the trust, according to her written order. The judge trimmed the subpoena, limiting it to records dating from Jan. 1, 2023, to the present.
The records are tied to Trump’s businesses. The BBC had sought documents from the trust as it prepares its defense against Trump’s claims that a documentary edit damaged his brand, properties and businesses.
Judge Lett wrote that the trust’s connection to Trump’s claimed losses makes the information relevant to any damages analysis the BBC may decide to conduct. She noted that Trump is now seeking $10 billion.
What financial records must Trump’s trust give the BBC?
The ruling requires the trust to produce business-related financial documents from Jan. 1, 2023, onward. Judge Lett said that time period should let the BBC assess Trump’s financial position before and after the documentary was published.
The judge rejected the trust’s argument that the subpoena, which sought records involving nearly 400 entities, went beyond proper discovery. In the order, she pointed to Trump’s own allegation that the documentary harmed his business interests.
Trump sued the BBC in December over edits in a documentary about the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. The program, titled Trump: A Second Chance?, aired on Oct. 28, 2024.
The documentary included a clip from Trump’s Jan. 6 speech in which he appeared to say, “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol … and I’ll be there with you. And we fight. We fight like hell.” The clip was made from separate parts of the speech, according to the reporting on the case.
Trump is seeking $5 billion in defamation damages and another $5 billion under Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.
At a hearing last week, Judge Lett had already signaled how she planned to rule. Politico reported that she also restricted how far the BBC could go in seeking information about Jan. 6. According to Politico, the judge said impressions formed from Trump’s Jan. 6 statements are at issue, while a full relitigation of Jan. 6 is not.
The edited speech drew serious fallout at the BBC. Director general Tim Davie and Deborah Turness, who headed the news division, stepped down after scrutiny of the documentary edit.
Last month, after Trump’s legal threat, the BBC apologized to him and described the edit as an “error of judgement.” The broadcaster did not offer to pay damages.
A spokesperson for Trump’s legal team said the BBC defamed Trump by “intentionally and deceitfully” editing the documentary and said Trump would keep trying to hold accountable those he says spread lies and deception.
A BBC spokesperson did not immediately return a request for comment.
This story draws on original reporting from Deadline.