Trump Removes BBC Studios From $10 Billion Defamation Lawsuit

President Donald Trump has dropped BBC Studios from his massive $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the BBC, according to court documents filed this week. The move dismisses all claims against the broadcaster’s commercial division with prejudice, though Trump’s legal battle against the British Broadcasting Corporation itself marches forward.

The lawsuit centers on a 2021 BBC Panorama documentary that Trump claims distorted his January 6 speech through selective editing. According to the complaint, the program’s cuts made it appear Trump had directly called on supporters to attack the U.S. Capitol—an allegation he denies.

Trump’s legal team characterized the BBC’s edits as creating a “false, defamatory, deceptive, disparaging, inflammatory, and malicious depiction” of the president. The network later acknowledged the edit had created a misleading impression of his remarks.

The latest court filing indicates both sides will cover their own legal costs in the dismissal of BBC Studios. Each party bears its own attorney’s fees in that portion of the case, though Trump continues pressing forward with his claims against the BBC itself.

The dispute originally began as a $1 billion complaint but ballooned into the $10 billion lawsuit filed in Florida’s Southern District Court. The BBC has contested the suit, arguing that since the documentary never aired in the United States, American courts lack jurisdiction. The broadcaster has vowed to mount a vigorous defense.