Overview

• An 85-page federal filing in Tampa names The New York Times Company, reporters Susanne Craig, Russ Buettner, Peter Baker, and Michael S. Schmidt, along with publisher Penguin Random House.
• Trump seeks at least $15 billion in compensatory damages plus punitive damages, alleging a decades-long pattern of malicious defamation tied to three articles and the book Lucky Loser.
• The lawsuit follows Times reporting on a sexually suggestive birthday note linked to Jeffrey Epstein that Trump denies authoring.
• A Times spokeswoman said the paper reported facts, showed visual evidence, published Trump's denial, and would stand up for journalists' First Amendment rights.
• The case marks an escalation of Trump's broader litigation against media outlets after settlements with ABC and Paramount and a separate July suit against the Wall Street Journal.