{"id":165353,"date":"2026-10-20T10:51:28","date_gmt":"2026-10-20T18:51:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/10\/20\/trump-too-busy-for-a-deposition-not-too-busy-for-a-campaign-rally\/"},"modified":"2026-10-20T10:51:28","modified_gmt":"2026-10-20T18:51:28","slug":"trump-too-busy-for-a-deposition-not-too-busy-for-a-campaign-rally","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/10\/20\/trump-too-busy-for-a-deposition-not-too-busy-for-a-campaign-rally\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump Too Busy For A Deposition, Not Too Busy For A Campaign Rally"},"content":{"rendered":"

When you sue someone for $10 billion, it\u2019s generally expected that you\u2019ll find time to talk about it. Under oath, even. But Donald Trump\u2019s lawyers told the BBC their client couldn\u2019t sit for his scheduled October 16 deposition due to \u201cother matters of national importance.\u201d On Monday,<\/a> the BBC told the court what those matters were: a campaign rally in Dalton, Georgia, and a Republican National Committee fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago.<\/p>\n

Womp womp womp.<\/p>\n

Quick refresher: Trump filed suit in the Southern District of Florida last December, seeking $5 billion for defamation and another $5 billion under Florida\u2019s deceptive and unfair trade practices law over a Panorama<\/em> documentary that spliced together two parts of his January 6 speech delivered nearly an hour apart. The BBC apologized for the edit, it cost the broadcaster its director general and its head of news, but declined to pay up<\/a> and has maintained that it didn\u2019t defame anyone. It has spent the months since making discovery deeply unpleasant for the president<\/a>, who as of July had produced zero documents to the BBC\u2019s 47,500 pages.<\/p>\n

The deposition saga, per the BBC\u2019s filings, goes like this. The BBC asked for dates in July. It followed up. And followed up. The parties finally agreed on October 16. Then weeks of silence, until September 28, when Trump\u2019s counsel wrote that \u201cthe President is no longer available for his deposition on October 16 due to other matters of national importance\u201d and that counsel would \u201cendeavor to provide you with a replacement date by the end of this week.\u201d<\/p>\n

The BBC\u2019s filing adds, with the economy of a broadcaster that has seen some things: \u201cHe did not.\u201d<\/p>\n

Instead, the first week of October, Trump\u2019s team said he \u201chas no availability whatsoever for a deposition\u201d before discovery closes on December 18, and offered up January instead. I mean he does have a midterm election to fuck up, so there\u2019s that filling up his calendar. <\/p>\n

U.S. Magistrate Judge Enjoliqu\u00e9 Aytch Lett was not impressed. In an order Friday (yes, the same Friday Trump was working a rally crowd in Georgia) she noted that she had already \u201cadmonished\u201d Trump for his \u201clack of participation\u201d in his own lawsuit, to \u201cno avail,\u201d with the BBC left filing discovery requests on its own because of his \u201cdisregard\u201d for the court\u2019s procedures. Then she put it plainly:<\/p>\n

\n

Going forward, the Court expects strict compliance with its Order, the failure of which will lead to sanctions.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

There\u2019s a hearing Thursday on the BBC\u2019s motion to compel. As BBC counsel Charles Tobin put it, Trump \u201cchose to file this lawsuit and, in doing so, he accepted the obligations of civil litigation.\u201d<\/p>\n

And Trump\u2019s sudden interest in avoiding sworn testimony isn\u2019t limited to his own. Monday the BBC moved to depose former special counsel Jack Smith, who spent years investigating January 6 and doesn\u2019t object to being deposed. \u2026But Trump\u2019s lawyers do. <\/p>\n

All of this has a familiar ring to 2023 when Trump voluntarily dismissed his $500 million lawsuit against Michael Cohen<\/a>, also in the Southern District of Florida, days before he was due to be deposed, with a spokesperson explaining that the deposition fell on a day \u201cwhen he is scheduled to be in the Great State of New Hampshire.\u201d <\/p>\n

So if history is any guide, the real question isn\u2019t when Trump finally sits for this deposition, it\u2019s whether his $10 billion lawsuit sticks around long enough for him to have to.<\/p>\n

Earlier:<\/strong> Trump Bit Off More Than He Could Chew Suing BBC, So DOJ Will Chew It For Him<\/a>
BBC Tells Trump To Sod Off \u2026 Politely<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of\u00a0The Jabot podcast<\/a>, and co-host of\u00a0Thinking Like A Lawyer<\/a>. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email\u00a0her<\/a>\u00a0with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter\u00a0@Kathryn1<\/a>\u00a0or Bluesky\u00a0@Kathryn1<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The post Trump Too Busy For A Deposition, Not Too Busy For A Campaign Rally<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tvia Getty\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When you sue someone for $10 billion, it\u2019s generally expected that you\u2019ll find time to talk about it. Under oath, even. But Donald Trump\u2019s lawyers told the BBC their client couldn\u2019t sit for his scheduled October 16 deposition due to \u201cother matters of national importance.\u201d On Monday,<\/a> the BBC told the court what those matters were: a campaign rally in Dalton, Georgia, and a Republican National Committee fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago.<\/p>\n

Womp womp womp.<\/p>\n

Quick refresher: Trump filed suit in the Southern District of Florida last December, seeking $5 billion for defamation and another $5 billion under Florida\u2019s deceptive and unfair trade practices law over a Panorama<\/em> documentary that spliced together two parts of his January 6 speech delivered nearly an hour apart. The BBC apologized for the edit, it cost the broadcaster its director general and its head of news, but declined to pay up<\/a> and has maintained that it didn\u2019t defame anyone. It has spent the months since making discovery deeply unpleasant for the president<\/a>, who as of July had produced zero documents to the BBC\u2019s 47,500 pages.<\/p>\n

The deposition saga, per the BBC\u2019s filings, goes like this. The BBC asked for dates in July. It followed up. And followed up. The parties finally agreed on October 16. Then weeks of silence, until September 28, when Trump\u2019s counsel wrote that \u201cthe President is no longer available for his deposition on October 16 due to other matters of national importance\u201d and that counsel would \u201cendeavor to provide you with a replacement date by the end of this week.\u201d<\/p>\n

The BBC\u2019s filing adds, with the economy of a broadcaster that has seen some things: \u201cHe did not.\u201d<\/p>\n

Instead, the first week of October, Trump\u2019s team said he \u201chas no availability whatsoever for a deposition\u201d before discovery closes on December 18, and offered up January instead. I mean he does have a midterm election to fuck up, so there\u2019s that filling up his calendar. <\/p>\n

U.S. Magistrate Judge Enjoliqu\u00e9 Aytch Lett was not impressed. In an order Friday (yes, the same Friday Trump was working a rally crowd in Georgia) she noted that she had already \u201cadmonished\u201d Trump for his \u201clack of participation\u201d in his own lawsuit, to \u201cno avail,\u201d with the BBC left filing discovery requests on its own because of his \u201cdisregard\u201d for the court\u2019s procedures. Then she put it plainly:<\/p>\n

\n

Going forward, the Court expects strict compliance with its Order, the failure of which will lead to sanctions.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

There\u2019s a hearing Thursday on the BBC\u2019s motion to compel. As BBC counsel Charles Tobin put it, Trump \u201cchose to file this lawsuit and, in doing so, he accepted the obligations of civil litigation.\u201d<\/p>\n

And Trump\u2019s sudden interest in avoiding sworn testimony isn\u2019t limited to his own. Monday the BBC moved to depose former special counsel Jack Smith, who spent years investigating January 6 and doesn\u2019t object to being deposed. \u2026But Trump\u2019s lawyers do. <\/p>\n

All of this has a familiar ring to 2023 when Trump voluntarily dismissed his $500 million lawsuit against Michael Cohen<\/a>, also in the Southern District of Florida, days before he was due to be deposed, with a spokesperson explaining that the deposition fell on a day \u201cwhen he is scheduled to be in the Great State of New Hampshire.\u201d <\/p>\n

So if history is any guide, the real question isn\u2019t when Trump finally sits for this deposition, it\u2019s whether his $10 billion lawsuit sticks around long enough for him to have to.<\/p>\n

Earlier:<\/strong> Trump Bit Off More Than He Could Chew Suing BBC, So DOJ Will Chew It For Him<\/a>
BBC Tells Trump To Sod Off \u2026 Politely<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

\"\"Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of\u00a0The Jabot podcast<\/a>, and co-host of\u00a0Thinking Like A Lawyer<\/a>. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email\u00a0her<\/a>\u00a0with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter\u00a0@Kathryn1<\/a>\u00a0or Bluesky\u00a0@Kathryn1<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When you sue someone for $10 billion, it\u2019s generally expected that you\u2019ll find time to talk about it. Under oath, even. But Donald Trump\u2019s lawyers told the BBC their client couldn\u2019t sit for his scheduled October 16 deposition due to \u201cother matters of national importance.\u201d On Monday, the BBC told the court what those matters […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":165354,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-165353","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-above_the_law"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165353","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=165353"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165353\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/165354"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=165353"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=165353"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=165353"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}