Judge throws out Trump’s lawsuit against NY Times

A judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by former US President Donald Trump against the New York Times.

The $100m (£79m) lawsuit accused the newspaper and Mr Trump’s estranged niece, Mary Trump, of “an insidious plot” to obtain his tax records.

It was filed in 2021 and relates to a Pulitzer Prize-winning series on Mr Trump’s financial affairs.

On Wednesday, Judge Robert Reed said the claims in the lawsuit “fail as a matter of constitutional law”.

“Courts have long recognised that reporters are entitled to engage in legal and ordinary newsgathering activities… as these actions are at the very core of protected First Amendment activity,” he wrote in his ruling.

The judge, a Democrat, also ordered Mr Trump to pay the legal costs for the newspaper and the three reporters listed as defendants.

“The New York Times is pleased with the judge’s decision today,” a spokesman said. “It is an important precedent reaffirming that the press is protected when it engages in routine newsgathering.”

A lawyer for Mr Trump, quoted by the Associated Press, said “we will weigh our client’s options”.

The 2018 investigation alleged that the former president was involved in “dubious tax schemes” and raised questions over his claim to be a self-made millionaire.

The lawsuit accused three journalists who reported on the story, Susanne Craig, David Barstow and Russell Buettner, of contacting and working with Mr Trump’s niece as part of a “personal vendetta” against him. It claimed they relentlessly pursued her and convinced her to turn over documents.

Ms Trump revealed herself as the source of the story in a tell-all memoir in 2020. She has filed a motion to dismiss the specific claims against her and a ruling is yet to be handed down.