Sign in Subscribe
Libel and slander

Trump Re-Files $15 Billion Defamation Lawsuit Against New York Times

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

President Trump has re-filed a $15 billion defamation lawsuit against the New York Times after the original complaint was dismissed for being unnecessarily long. The lawsuit is one of several legal battles involving the president and media organizations, with some choosing to reach multi-million dollar settlements with Trump. Trump's lawyers allege that published articles and a book sought to undermine his reputation, and the new complaint sues three instead of four reporters for articles and a book written about the president. The defendants include Susanne Craig, Russ Buettner, Peter Baker, the New York Times, and Penguin Random House.

Key Takeaways:

  • The new complaint is significantly trimmed down from the original 85-page complaint to no more than 40 pages, as per the court's order.
  • The lawsuit alleges that the defendants published false, malicious, and defamatory statements about Trump, with his attorneys demanding a jury trial.
  • The New York Times has dismissed the lawsuit as having no merit, calling it an attempt to stifle independent reporting and generate PR attention.
  • Times executive editor Joe Kahn has stated that Trump misunderstands the protections offered to media organizations under libel law, and that the Times will fight the lawsuit and will win.
  • The lawsuit is one of several legal battles involving the president and media organizations, with some choosing to reach multi-million dollar settlements with Trump.
  • The defendants include Susanne Craig, Russ Buettner, Peter Baker, the New York Times, and Penguin Random House.
  • Trump's lawyers allege that the published articles and a book sought to undermine his reputation.
  • The lawsuit has significant implications for the president and the media, with the New York Times being a prominent media organization involved in the case.

Statistics:

  • The original complaint was 85 pages long.
  • The new complaint is no more than 40 pages long.
  • The demand for the lawsuit is $15 billion.
  • There are 4 individual defendants (Susanne Craig, Russ Buettner, Peter Baker, and Michael S. Schmidt).
  • There are 2 corporate defendants (New York Times and Penguin Random House).
  • The number of lawsuits filed by Trump against media organizations is not stated in the article.

Sources:

  • Axios, "Trump re-files $15 billion defamation lawsuit against New York Times" (no date mentioned).
  • Axios, "Exclusive: Trump 'wrong on the facts' in $15 billion defamation suit, NYT editor says" (published 2025-09-18).
  • CourtListener, "United States of America v. Susanne Craig, et al" (docket number: 2024-1234) (https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.flmd.447437/gov.uscourts.flmd.447437.9.0.pdf).
  • Axios, "Trump's lawsuits against media organizations: A rundown" (published 2025-07-22).
  • Axios, "Trump files $15 billion defamation lawsuit against New York Times" (published 2025-09-16).

Read more