Overview
- The three-judge panel affirmed that Trump failed to adequately allege falsity, a required element for a defamation claim.
- Judges Kevin Newsom and Elizabeth Branch, both Trump appointees, and Judge Adalberto Jordan issued the unanimous ruling.
- The opinion found Trump’s 2020 election conduct is open to multiple subjective interpretations, making the label not verifiable as true or false.
- U.S. District Judge Raag Singhal had previously ruled the “Big Lie” references were opinion, not actionable statements of fact.
- Trump’s 2022 suit sought $475 million and alleged CNN linked him to Adolf Hitler, and his legal team vowed to keep pursuing the case after the loss.