BBC reveals how it will fight Donald Trump's $10billion lawsuit and accuses President of major 'failure'

The filing from the BBC said it would argue that Panorama's editing of the President's January 6 speech did not break Florida's laws on unfair trading practices.

It will also argue the editing was not "a brazen attempt to interfere in and influence" the outcome of the 2024 election.

Florida courts lack jurisdiction to hear the case under state law, federal rules governing civil cases, and the constitution's "due process" clause, BBC lawyers will argue.

They wrote that the "defendants intend to file a motion to dismiss the complaint in its entirety", with a request to file a motion longer than the usual 20 pages.

It added the news organisation intended to "raise various arguments regarding the court’s lack of general and specific personal jurisdiction over them under Florida law... as well as arguments regarding [Trump’s] failure to state a claim for defamation or for violations of the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act".

The documentary titled "Trump: A Second Chance?", released a week before the 2024 election, contributed to Tim Davie's resignation as BBC director-general and Deborah Turness's as head of BBC News.

The BBC has until March 17 to formally respond to the filed complaint, with a trial scheduled for February 15 next year.

US district judge Roy Altman, who was appointed by Mr Trump, will preside over the case.

Panorama had spliced together two clips of the President to make it appear as if he was encouraging his supporters to "fight like hell" on January 6.

Mr Trump's lawsuit filed in Florida said the BBC, in editing the documentary, had "a false, defamatory, deceptive, disparaging, inflammatory and malicious depiction" of the President.

His lawyers told the court Florida had jurisdiction because the BBC engaged in "substantial and not isolated" activity in the state.

Among this was a BBC office located in Coral Gables, Florida, seven miles from downtown Miami.

Citing usage of virtual private networks (VPNs), the President's lawyers said it was likely that viewers in Florida had seen the documentary before its removal.

The BBC countered, saying it did not air the documentary in Florida and argued it did not materially damage Trump's reputation.

It added that it was protected by America's free speech laws, and said Mr Trump's claims the lawsuit was available through streaming service BritBox were untrue.

This is not the first time Donald Trump has sued a media organisation.

He previously sued major US newspapers The Washington Post and The New York Times in 2020, cases which were dismissed in 2023.

The President is filed another £10billion lawsuit with the Wall Street Journal in July last year.

The Wall Street Journal filed its own motion to dismiss in September last year.