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Trump seeks to block Jack Smith deposition in BBC defamation suit

newsOct 19, 202618923

Donald Trump's lawyers moved to bar former special counsel Jack Smith from testifying in Trump's $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the BBC. The BBC subpoenaed Smith as it defends against the December suit over the documentary Trump: A Second Chance?; Smith has not objected to the subpoena. BBC attorneys said Smith's report conclusions are public but the evidence underpinning them, including alleged findings that the January 6 violence was foreseeable and that Trump caused it, remains nonpublic. Trump's team told the court Smith lacks personal knowledge and that any evidence he gathered is secondhand. Magistrate Judge Enjolique Aytch Lett warned of sanctions if Trump does not comply with discovery, which includes sitting for a deposition; the BBC noted Trump missed a scheduled deposition date while attending a campaign rally in Dalton, Georgia and a Mar-a-Lago fundraising event. The BBC is also seeking dismissal of the lawsuit on the ground the documentary was not shown in the United States.

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