Overview
- On November 18, a three-judge 11th Circuit panel affirmed the 2023 dismissal, holding that President Donald Trump failed to adequately allege falsity.
- The court concluded that calling Trump’s election claims the “Big Lie” is ambiguous political rhetoric not susceptible to proof, citing precedent that similar labels are treated as opinion.
- Judges Kevin Newsom and Elizabeth Branch, both Trump appointees, and Judge Adalberto Jordan, an Obama appointee, issued an unpublished per curiam opinion.
- Trump’s $475 million suit filed in 2022 argued CNN’s phrasing linked him to Adolf Hitler, but District Judge Raag Singhal dismissed the case with prejudice as non-actionable opinion.
- Trump’s legal team denounced the ruling and indicated he will continue to pursue the case, with the court noting that how often CNN used the phrase is irrelevant to falsity.