Porn star Stormy Daniels’ defamation lawsuit against U.S. President Donald Trump has been dismissed.
Daniels, real name Stephanie Gregory Clifford, claims to have had an affair with Trump in 2006 – one year after he married First Lady Melania Trump.
Her lawyer Michael Avenatti filed the suit after Trump accused her on Twitter of inventing a story about being threatened by a man who told her not to speak out about the alleged fling.
On Monday (15Oct18), a California judge ruled that the tweet, which called her claims “a total con job” and compared a photo-fit of the man she alleges menaced her to a picture of her ex-husband, is protected by America’s First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of speech.
The 39-year-old was also ordered to pay Trump’s legal fees, which are yet to be calculated. She is appealing the ruling.
Trump’s lawyer Charles Harder hailed the decision as a “total victory” for his client.
However, in a statement posted on Twitter, Avenatti slammed Harder’s claim as “an outright lie” as other cases relating to the alleged affair are still ongoing.
The ruling does not affect a separate lawsuit that the pornographic actress has brought against the 72-year-old businessman-turned-politician over the $130,000 (£98,000) she claims Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, paid her to sign a non-disclosure agreement to ensure she stayed silent in the run-up to the 2016 presidential election.
Cohen has pleaded guilty to violating U.S. campaign finance laws by making payments to Daniels, and another woman, who also claimed to have had a sexual relationship with the President. He has alleged the payments were made at Trump’s request.
Stormy Daniels’ defamation case against President Trump dismissed
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