Trump Receives $400K Tab for Reporters' Legal Fees

Former president's lawsuit against three journalists and the 'New York Times' was dismissed
By Bob Cronin,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 12, 2024 5:20 PM CST
Trump Receives $400K Tab for Reporters' Legal Fees
A sign for the New York Times hangs above the entrance to its building in New York in 2021.   (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)

A judge has ordered Donald Trump to pay almost $400,000 in legal fees incurred by the New York Times and three of its reporters in defending themselves against a lawsuit he filed over a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation into his finances. A court dismissed the lawsuit seeking $100 million in damages last May, finding that their newspaper's coverage was protected by the First Amendment, CNBC reports. "The court has sent a message to those who want to misuse the judicial system to try to silence journalists," a spokeswoman for the Times said Friday.

The 2018 lawsuit accused the reporters—Susanne Craig, David Barstow and Russ Buettner—of plotting with his niece, Mary, to obtain confidential tax records used in the coverage, which won the Pulitzer for explanatory journalism. Trump argued that his niece broke confidentiality provisions originating in previous settlement between the two, per the Hill. Alina Habba, a Trump lawyer, told NBC News on Friday that "We are disappointed that the NY Times is no longer in this matter" but that the former president's legal team looks forward "to proceeding with our claims" against Mary Trump. The amount due is $392,638.69. (More Donald Trump stories.)

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