Judge dismisses Trump's defamation suit against Wall Street Journal over Epstein birthday letter article, with prejudice

A federal judge in Miami on Saturday, Oct. 31, dismissed with prejudice President Donald Trump's defamation lawsuit over a July 2025 Wall Street Journal article about a birthday letter for Jeffrey Epstein. U.S. District Judge Darrin P. Gayles granted the defendants' motion to dismiss Trump's first amended complaint, finding it did not plausibly allege that each defendant acted with actual malice.¹ The dismissal means the suit cannot be amended or refiled, The Guardian reported.²

The defendants are Dow Jones & Co., which publishes the Journal; its parent, News Corp; News Corp director and majority owner Rupert Murdoch; News Corp CEO Robert Thomson; and Journal reporters Khadeeja Safdar and Joseph Palazzolo, who wrote the article. The case is Trump v. Dow Jones & Co., No. 1:25-cv-23232.¹³

What the order says

As a public figure, Trump had to plead facts supporting a reasonable inference that the defendants knew the statements were false or recklessly disregarded whether they were, the order says. Gayles called the amended complaint's malice allegations "conclusory, vague, sometimes inconsistent with the Article, and often irrelevant."¹

• Denials: A public figure's denial does not by itself bar publication, the judge wrote, and the article reported Trump's denial that he wrote the letter.
• Investigation: The order says the article shows the defendants sought comment from Trump and his team, Justice Department officials and the FBI, and tried to reach Ghislaine Maxwell. It described the complaint as "grasping at straws" in trying to find flaws.
• Maxwell: Citing Trump's own allegation that Maxwell told federal officials she did not remember him submitting a letter, the judge called references to her "a red herring."
• Omissions and a later article: Choices about what to include do not show malice, the order says, and a Sept. 8, 2025, Journal article comparing the letter with Trump's earlier signatures, drawings and writing does not support a finding that the defendants knew or should have known he did not sign it.¹

The judge did not decide whether the article was true or defamatory. Whether Trump wrote the letter is a question of fact that cannot be resolved on a motion to dismiss, the order says. The court again declined to consider a copy of the birthday book that the Epstein estate produced to a House committee, which released it Sept. 8, 2025, because Trump disputes its authenticity.¹

The defendants sought attorneys' fees, arguing the suit lacks merit, the order says. Gayles wrote that he agreed Trump's claims "lack merit" but did not rule on fees, saying the parties had not fully briefed whether Florida's or New York's anti-SLAPP law applies. Any fee motion is due within 30 days.¹

How the case got here

Trump filed suit July 18, 2025, the day after the article appeared online, alleging the letter is "fake."¹ He sought $10 billion, ABC News reported.⁴ Gayles dismissed the original complaint April 13, 2026, with leave to amend, and later denied his request for limited discovery on actual malice before amending.³¹⁴ Trump filed the amended complaint May 27, the defendants moved to dismiss it June 10, and the court heard argument Aug. 5.¹

The responses

A spokesperson for Trump's legal team said that "President Trump will continue to press forward in his powerhouse lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal and all of the other defendants," The Guardian reported. A Dow Jones spokesperson said: "We're pleased with the court's decision."² The Associated Press reported that Trump has denied writing the letter and called the story "false, malicious, and defamatory."⁵

What the records do not show

• The order makes no finding on whether Trump wrote or signed the letter or whether the article was true.¹
• As of Oct. 31, the docket shows no notice of appeal and no motion for attorneys' fees.³
• The Trump legal team's statement as published does not say whether he will appeal.²