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Donald Trump's lawsuit against ABC News will be heard in April, 2025, and if he wins the November election he could become the first sitting president to give evidence in a defamation lawsuit.
On Tuesday, Miami federal judge Cecilia Altonaga set the trial date for two weeks starting on April 7, 2025 and also set up the pre-trial schedule.
Trump accuses ABC News and host George Stephanopoulos of defamation for "falsely stating on several occasions that Plaintiff had been found liable by multiple juries for the rape of Ms. E. Jean Carroll."
Trump's lawsuit also states that the claim is "false, intentional, malicious and designed to cause harm."
Newsweek sought email comment from ABC News on Wednesday.
In May, 2023, a New York jury found that Trump did not rape Carroll, as she had asserted, but he had sexually assaulted her. The jury awarded her $5 million for defamation and sexual assault.
Trump countersued Carroll, saying that the jury had decided her rape allegation was false. In August, 2023, Judge Lewis Trump dismissed the counterclaim, saying that rape and sexual assault are both "felonious sex crimes". He added that Carroll's allegations have been shown to be "substantially true."
In January, 2024 a second New York jury awarded Carroll an additional $83.3 million for defamation for Trump's continued denial of the sexual assault. Trump has posted a $91.6 million bond for an appeal.
Trump's lawsuit against ABC arose from an episode of the current affairs program This Week, which aired on March 10.
In it, Stephanopoulos asked Republican congresswoman Nancy Mace how she could continue to support Trump after he had raped Carroll.
"You endorsed Donald Trump for president. Judges and two separate juries have found him liable for rape and for defaming the victim of that rape. How do you square your endorsement of Donald Trump with the testimony that we just saw?" Stephanopoulos asked Mace.
Mace, a rape victim, shot back that Stephanopoulos was asking insensitive questions.
"It was not a criminal court case, number one. Number two, I live with shame. And you're asking me a question about my political choices trying to shame me as a rape victim," she said.
Altonago said that Trump and ABC must agree on a mediator by April 29.
A mediator is routinely appointed in lawsuits to see if an agreement can be reached before trial.
"If the parties cannot agree on a mediator, they shall notify the Clerk in writing as soon as possible, and the Clerk shall designate a certified mediator on a blind rotation basis."
"Within seven days of mediation, the parties are required to file a mediation report with the Court," she wrote.
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About the writer
Sean O'Driscoll is a Newsweek Senior Crime and Courts Reporter based in Ireland. His focus is reporting on U.S. law. ... Read more