BBC asks judge to set Trump deposition date in defamation lawsuit
Trump’s lawyers say he cannot attend an agreed October 16 deposition and have proposed January. The BBC wants a firm date before discovery closes.
The BBC asked a US federal judge on October 13 to require President Donald Trump to set a firm date for a deposition in his defamation lawsuit against the broadcaster. Trump had been due to testify on October 16, but his lawyers said he could no longer attend and proposed January instead, according to reports by AFP and Hindustan Times. The timing matters because the BBC says the deadline for gathering evidence is approaching.
Why Trump’s October 16 deposition was disputed
The parties agreed in July to the October 16 date, Hindustan Times reported. On September 28, Trump’s lawyers told the BBC he could no longer appear then. They said he would be unavailable until at least mid-December and suggested rescheduling his testimony for January.
Trump’s legal team cited ‘other matters of national importance,’ according to Hindustan Times. The report said the filing did not identify those obligations or explain why they prevented testimony on the agreed date. The BBC has asked the judge to resolve the scheduling dispute.
The BBC wants a firm date before the discovery deadline, with only two months of discovery remaining, Hindustan Times reported. Its lawyers said seven BBC witnesses had already been deposed, while the broadcaster still lacked a date for Trump’s testimony. The BBC asked the court to address the issue at a hearing scheduled for October 22.
What Trump’s BBC defamation case concerns
Trump filed the lawsuit in December 2025 over edits to a BBC documentary that joined two parts of his January 6, 2021 speech, according to AFP’s report in The Straits Times. The BBC acknowledged the editing and apologized. It has denied that the edit caused Trump real injury and has sought dismissal of the case.
The Straits Times reported that Trump sought at least US$5 billion on each of two counts when he filed the suit. Hindustan Times reported that his legal team defended the action as holding the BBC accountable for defamation and election interference. Those are the parties’ positions in the litigation; the deposition request concerns when Trump will give evidence.
The case is set for trial in February 2027, according to The Straits Times. The October 22 hearing is the scheduled opportunity for the judge to consider the BBC’s request for a deposition date.
Sources and context
- BBC accuses Trump of dodging deposition in US$10 billion defamation suitThe Straits Times (AFP)
- Trump cancels BBC defamation lawsuit deposition: 'Unavailable because of matters of national importance'Hindustan Times
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