Federal judge lets Trump keep his business finances hidden from BBC
WASHINGTON, DC: A Federal Judge suspended the Thursday, August 6 deadline for President Donald Trump’s business empire to share its finances with the BBC, letting his business keep details from the media network temporarily.
BBC sought the documents, involving tax returns, financial statements and ownership records covering roughly 400 entities after Trump alleged that the network’s 2024 documentary damaged his “brand, properties and businesses.”
Trump needs to share business records with BBC in $10 billion lawsuit
BBC was scheduled to receive a number of documents from Trump’s business on Thursday, which were sought after Trump alleged that BBC’s 2024 documentary caused Trump personal reputational and Financial harm and subsequently slapped the network with a $10 billion lawsuit.
However, a federal court has temporarily paused the process as the president’s lawyers maintain their objections to handing over the materials.
The ongoing Libel Lawsuit concerns the BBC’s editing of the president’s Jan. 6, 2021, speech as part of a documentary.
Trump’s lawyers filed an emergency motion on Wednesday, August 5, demanding the stay against the broadcaster’s demand, arguing that the release of details would cause irreparable harm as the outlet would have seen the confidential information not meant to be shared.
US District Judge Roy Altman, nominated to the bench by Trump during his first term, agreed to the president’s emergency request to halt the document production until the revisions get sorted out.
“This is a compelling argument,” Altman wrote. “If the Plaintiff’s amendment obviates the need to compel a non-party to disclose confidential financial information, we think it’s prudent to enter a brief stay of the Order until the amendment request is resolved.”
Trump filed a lawsuit against the BBC
President Donald Trump filed a lawsuit against the British broadcaster, accusing it of editing his Jan 6 speech to supporters before the US Capitol attack in a defamatory and deceptive way, slapping the outlet with a lawsuit worth $10 billion.
A magistrate judge agreed with the outlet’s argument that Trump would have to share financial documents detailing the ownership and valuations of his business entities under the lawsuit, as the president, his brand and properties had suffered reputational damages.
Trump was given the Thursday deadline for first “substantial production.” However, he won the 11th-hour court reprieve filed only a day earlier.
