(MENAFN- Live Mint) ABC News has agreed to contribute $15 million to US President-elect Donald Trump's planned presidential foundation and museum to settle a defamation lawsuit filed by Trump. The settlement, finalized on Friday (December 13) includes an additional $1 million payment by ABC News to cover Trump's legal fees.
The lawsuit centered on comments made by ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos during a March 10 interview with Republican Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina. Stephanopoulos stated that trump had been "found liable for rape," a claim Trump argued was "patently and demonstrably false." In court filings, Trump accused Stephanopoulos of acting "with actual malice or with a reckless disregard for the truth."
As part of the agreement, ABC News is required to add an editor's note to the March 10 online article linked to the interview. The note will read: "ABC News and George Stephanopoulos regret statements regarding President Donald J. Trump made during an interview by George Stephanopoulos with Rep. Nancy Mace on ABC's This Week on March 10, 2024."
Although the foundation and museum referenced in the settlement have yet to be established, the substantial contribution marks a significant outcome in Trump's efforts to counter defamatory statements.
The settlement, signed by both Trump and Stephanopoulos, brings an end to the legal dispute that highlighted heightened tensions between Trump and major media outlets.
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In May 2023, a federal jury in New York found Donald Trump liable for sexual abuse in a civil lawsuit filed by writer E. Jean Carroll. The case revolved around an alleged incident in the mid-1990s, where Carroll claimed Trump assaulted her in the dressing room of a Bergdorf Goodman department store in New York City. The jury also found Trump liable for defaming Carroll through comments he made after she published a book in 2019 describing the alleged encounter. Trump was ordered to pay $5 million in damages.
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Notably, the jury did not find Trump liable for rape, as the evidence presented did not meet the legal standard for rape under New York's penal code. In an August 2023 ruling, US District Judge Lewis Kaplan, while dismissing a defamation counterclaim by Trump against Carroll, clarified that the jury's decision was based on the technical legal definition of rape in New York.
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In a separate case decided in January 2024, another federal jury in New York found Trump liable for defaming Carroll. This lawsuit stemmed from additional public remarks Trump made about her. The jury awarded Carroll $83.3 million in damages.
Trump has consistently denied all allegations and continues to maintain his innocence regarding Carroll's claims.
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