Trump Refiles $15bn Defamation Lawsuit Against New York Times

United States President, Donald Trump, has refiled a $15 billion defamation lawsuit against The New York Times, weeks after a federal judge dismissed an earlier version of the case for being overly verbose and self-congratulatory.

Court documents obtained on Thursday showed that the new filing, submitted in Florida, was a streamlined 40-page complaint, less than half the length of the 85-page version thrown out in September by District Judge Steven Merryday.

Recall that Judge Merryday had criticised the previous filing for its “florid writing,” “repetitive” style, and “laudatory praise” of Trump, noting that it read more like a political speech than a legal document.

In the revised suit, Trump accused The New York Times, three of its reporters, and book publisher Penguin Random House of publishing “false, defamatory, and malicious” statements that damaged his reputation.

“The statements in question wrongly defame and disparage President Trump’s hard-earned professional reputation, which he painstakingly built for decades before entering the White House,” the lawsuit stated.

President Trump, who returned to the White House in January 2025, sought compensatory damages of no less than $15 billion and additional punitive damages “in an amount to be determined upon trial.”

According to the filing, the contested materials include two New York Times articles and a book that Trump claimed were published “with actual malice,” a key legal standard for defamation involving public figures in the United States.

The lawsuit marked ‘We don’t see anything yet Lu the latest chapter’ in Trump’s long-running feud with the American media. Since his return to office, he has repeatedly accused major outlets of bias and has launched multiple lawsuits against journalists and news organisations.

Recall that in July, Trump sued media mogul Rupert Murdoch and The Wall Street Journal for at least $10 billion, claiming the paper defamed him by reporting on a letter he allegedly sent to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

That same month, Paramount reportedly settled a separate Trump lawsuit over CBS News’ “60 Minutes” election coverage for $16 million. Trump had accused the network of deceptively editing an interview to favour his 2024 rival, Kamala Harris.

The New York Times was yet to issue an official response to the latest filing.