President Donald Trump filed a major libel lawsuit in federal court Friday against Dow Jones, News Corp, Rupert Murdoch, and two Wall Street Journal reporters after the Journal published an article claiming Trump authored a bizarre birthday letter to Jeffrey Epstein in 2003.
The lawsuit, filed in the Southern District of Florida, alleges libel, assault, and slander over what Trump calls a “completely fabricated” story. The Wall Street Journal claimed it had obtained a “letter bearing Trump’s name” that was supposedly part of a leather-bound birthday book for Epstein, including a sketch of a naked woman allegedly drawn by Trump.
No image of the alleged letter was included in the article, and neither the DOJ nor the FBI confirmed its authenticity. Trump immediately denounced the report as a hoax, vowing legal action against the Journal and its parent companies.
“The Wall Street Journal, and Rupert Murdoch personally, were warned directly by President Donald J. Trump that the supposed letter they printed was a FAKE and, if they print it, they will be sued,” Trump said Thursday on Truth Social. “They printed it anyway. Now they will pay.”
Trump also claimed Murdoch had acknowledged the warning and said he would “take care of it,” but “obviously, did not have the power to do so.”
The lawsuit represents a broader push by Trump to fight back against what he describes as coordinated smears tied to Epstein’s legacy. He has repeatedly denied any involvement in Epstein’s criminal activity and has pointed out that his association with Epstein ended in 2004 after he was banned from Mar-a-Lago.
As reports about Epstein continue to circulate, Trump has said he directed Attorney General Pam Bondi to seek the unsealing of grand jury testimony related to Epstein and make public any credible evidence that may exist.
Despite relentless attempts by media outlets and political opponents to tie Trump to Epstein, no evidence has ever emerged linking the former president to the sex crimes that led to Epstein’s 2019 arrest.
Trump’s legal team has not yet released the full complaint, but sources close to the president say the case will pursue damages in the hundreds of millions of dollars.