Melania Trump seeks legal action against Michael Wolff after judge dismissed Epstein-related lawsuit

WASHINGTON, DC: First lady Melania Trump has filed a motion for sanctions against journalist Michael Wolff, months after a federal judge threw out Wolff's lawsuit against her and called his legal maneuvering "contorted" and not "how the federal courts work."

Melania is now seeking to recover costs and attorneys' fees tied to the litigation, along with other relief, arguing Wolff's case amounted to "a fundraising drive and a political spectacle."

Judge dismisses Michael Wolff lawsuit against Melania Trump

Wolff has written four books about President Donald Trump since he returned to office.

Last October, Wolff sued the first lady after her lawyer, Alejandro Brito, sent him a letter threatening legal action for defamation unless he retracted statements linking her to Jeffrey Epstein.

Wolff didn’t wait around. Instead, he filed his own suit in New York state court, relying on the state's anti-SLAPP law, which helps shield people from lawsuits aimed at suppressing public criticism. Brito then moved the case to federal court, where the judge ultimately dismissed it.

US District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil, a Trump appointee sitting in Manhattan, dismissed Wolff's lawsuit in May, writing that while she had jurisdiction over the case, she was declining to exercise it.

"There are many features of this case that make it complicated: the prominence of the personalities involved, the scandalizing content of the underlying statements, and, frankly, an inappropriate level of tactical gamesmanship," Vyskocil wrote in her 45-page opinion.

"The Court will not be conscripted to oversee an abusively presented spat."

She acknowledged Wolff and the first lady "have a real dispute" but said the two sides needed to litigate it "according to the same procedures as everyone else."

Melania Trump seeks sanctions against Michael Wolff

Melania Trump's legal team accused Wolff of turning “a serious, looming defamation suit against Plaintiff based on his wrongdoing into a fundraising drive and a political spectacle,” in the 26-page motion.

“[Wolff] falsely accused Mrs Trump of being tied to Jeffrey Epstein’s misconduct, and when she demanded a retraction, he did not respond,” the filing continued.

“He instead raced to a New York court to try and get improper, advance approval of his statements, promoted the suit across his own media platforms, and used it to raise more than $836,000.

“The Court saw through the maneuver.”

Melania's legal team argued that sanctions against Wolff were warranted regardless of whether a court ultimately deems the author's statements about her to be defamatory.

The first lady's legal team added: “Those independent grounds support sanctions against Plaintiff and his counsel.”

Melania has repeatedly and publicly denied any association with Epstein. Messages seeking comment from Wolff's legal team were not immediately returned.