Trump must pay New York Times, 3 reporters nearly $400,000 US in legal fees

Former U.S. president Donald Trump was ordered Friday to pay nearly $400,000 in legal fees to The New York Times and three investigative reporters after he sued them unsuccessfully over a Pulitzer Prize-winning story about his family's wealth and tax practices.

The newspaper and reporters Susanne Craig, David Barstow and Russell Buettner were dismissed from the lawsuit in May. Trump's claim against his estranged niece, Mary Trump, that she breached a prior settlement agreement by giving tax records to the reporters is still pending.

New York Judge Robert Reed said that given the "complexity of the issues" in the case and other factors, it was reasonable that Donald Trump be forced to pay lawyers for the Times and the reporters a total of $392,638 in legal fees.

"Today's decision shows that the state's newly amended anti-SLAPP statute can be a powerful force for protecting press freedom," Times spokesperson Danielle Rhoads Ha said, referring to a New York law that bars baseless lawsuits designed to silence critics. Such lawsuits are known as SLAPPs or strategic lawsuits against public participation.

"The court has sent a message to those who want to misuse the judicial system to try to silence journalists," Rhoads Ha said.

Trump's niece now sole defendant

In a separate ruling Friday, Reed denied a request by Mary Trump — now the sole defendant — that the case be put on hold while she appeals his June decision that allowed Donald Trump's claim against her to proceed.

Mary Trump's lawyers declined comment.

Donald Trump's lawyer, Alina Habba, said they remain disappointed that the Times and its reporters were dropped from the case. She said they are pleased that the court has "once again affirmed the strength of our claims against Mary and is denying her attempt to avoid accountability."

Donald Trump's lawsuit, filed in 2021, accused the Times and its reporters of relentlessly seeking out Mary Trump as a source of information and convincing her to turn over confidential tax records.

He claimed the reporters were aware her prior settlement agreement barred her from disclosing the documents, which she'd received in a dispute over family patriarch Fred Trump's estate.

The Times' reporting challenged Donald Trump's claims of self-made wealth by documenting how his father, Fred Trump, had given him at least $413 million over the decades, including through tax avoidance schemes.

Mary Trump identified herself in a book published in 2020 as the source of the documents.