In December 2024, ABC News settled Donald Trump’s defamation lawsuit for $15 million paid to a nonprofit for his future presidential library, plus $1 million in legal fees and a published statement of regret. The Trump ABC News defamation lawsuit centered on anchor George Stephanopoulos’s repeated on-air claim that Trump had been “found liable for rape,” a phrasing that did not match what the jury in the E. Jean Carroll civil case actually decided. Disney, ABC’s parent company, resolved the case after a federal judge refused to dismiss it and a magistrate ordered both Trump and Stephanopoulos to sit for depositions.
What Stephanopoulos Said on Air
On March 10, 2024, during an interview with Representative Nancy Mace on ABC’s This Week, Stephanopoulos said Trump had been “found liable for rape” in the Carroll case. He repeated the claim ten times during the segment.1BBC News. ABC News Settles Trump Defamation Lawsuit
The 2023 Carroll jury held Trump liable for “sexual abuse” and defamation, awarding Carroll $5 million. It specifically concluded that Carroll had not proven Trump raped her under New York law.2Politico. Trump Trial Jean Carroll Defamation Verdict New York’s penal code defines rape narrowly, requiring penile penetration of the vagina; forcible penetration by other means is classified as sexual abuse. Judge Lewis Kaplan, who oversaw the Carroll litigation, had acknowledged that the jury’s finding matched what many people “commonly understand” to be rape, but noted the jury had not found rape “within the narrow, technical meaning” of the statute.3PBS NewsHour. ABC Agrees to Pay $15 Million to Trump’s Presidential Library to Settle Defamation Lawsuit First Amendment attorney Floyd Abrams later called Stephanopoulos’s statements an “inaccurate summary” of the verdict.4CNN. George Stephanopoulos Trump Settlement ABC
How the Case Moved Through Court
Trump filed suit on March 18, 2024, one week after the broadcast, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.5CourtListener. Trump v. American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. The complaint named ABC News, American Broadcasting Companies, Inc., and Stephanopoulos personally. Trump’s attorney, Alejandro Brito of Brito PLLC, alleged that Stephanopoulos acted with “actual malice,” the standard a public figure must meet in a defamation claim, and that he knowingly ignored the distinction between the jury’s finding of sexual abuse and the legal definition of rape.6Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse. Trump v. American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
Motion to Dismiss Denied
ABC and Stephanopoulos moved to dismiss, arguing the statements were protected by a “fair reporting privilege” and were substantially true in light of Judge Kaplan’s own characterization of the verdict. On July 24, 2024, U.S. District Judge Cecilia Altonaga denied the motion in a 21-page ruling.7The Hill. Trump Defamation Lawsuit Stephanopoulos
Altonaga rejected the fair-reporting-privilege defense and distinguished the anchor’s statements from Kaplan’s earlier observations. She wrote that “New York has opted to separate out a crime of rape; and Stephanopoulos’s statements dealt not with the public’s usage of that term, but the jury’s consideration of it during a formal legal proceeding.” She concluded that “a reasonable jury could conclude Plaintiff was defamed and, as a result, dismissal is inappropriate.”7The Hill. Trump Defamation Lawsuit Stephanopoulos
Depositions Ordered
The case moved into discovery. By December 2024, with a summary judgment deadline approaching on December 24, the defendants sought to depose Trump. On December 13, U.S. Magistrate Judge Lisette Reid ordered both Trump and Stephanopoulos to sit for in-person depositions the following week, each limited to four hours. Reid observed that while Trump had previously had a “fairly good argument” to delay a deposition during the campaign, “he’s now a completely different posture, and he should be able to make himself available.”8NBC News. Trump May Be Deposed This Week in Defamation Case Against ABC News
That same day, Trump, Stephanopoulos, and ABC executives signed the settlement. Its terms were filed in court and made public on December 14.3PBS NewsHour. ABC Agrees to Pay $15 Million to Trump’s Presidential Library to Settle Defamation Lawsuit The case was formally terminated on December 16.5CourtListener. Trump v. American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
What ABC Agreed to Pay
Under the settlement, ABC News agreed to a $15 million charitable contribution to a nonprofit established for Trump’s future presidential foundation and museum, plus $1 million in legal fees paid to Brito’s law firm. ABC also posted an editor’s note to its March 10, 2024, online article reading: “ABC News and George Stephanopoulos regret statements regarding President Donald J Trump made during an interview by George Stephanopoulos with Rep. Nancy Mace on ABC’s This Week on March 10, 2024.”1BBC News. ABC News Settles Trump Defamation Lawsuit
The agreement required ABC to wire the $15 million to an escrow account managed by Brito’s firm within ten days.3PBS NewsHour. ABC Agrees to Pay $15 Million to Trump’s Presidential Library to Settle Defamation Lawsuit ABC later confirmed it wired the payment on December 19, 2024.9U.S. Senate – Senator Warren. Warren, Blumenthal, Stansbury Press Trump on Missing Millions Donated to Dissolved Trump Library Fund
Why Disney Chose to Settle
Reporting by the New York Times laid out Disney’s calculus. Executives concluded they had a “flawed case” given Stephanopoulos’s repeated mischaracterization of the jury verdict. The legal merits were only part of the picture.10The New York Times. Disney Trump ABC Lawsuit
The company worried about a Florida jury. Trump had carried the state by 13 points in the 2024 election, and Disney feared a trial verdict that would exceed the settlement cost. Executives were also concerned about brand damage; the company was still recovering from its public clash with then-Governor Ron DeSantis over Florida education policy and wanted to avoid becoming a political target again. Trump had publicly threatened to strip ABC’s broadcasting license, and Disney officials feared that a “vindictive sitting president” could use regulatory leverage against the company.10The New York Times. Disney Trump ABC Lawsuit
Disney also feared that litigating the case to the Supreme Court could give Trump and his allies a vehicle to challenge New York Times v. Sullivan, the 1964 decision that requires public figures to prove “actual malice” in a defamation claim. Losing that precedent would weaken press protections industry-wide.11Nieman Lab. Inside Disney’s Decision to Settle the Trump Suit Against ABC News The settlement was recommended by Disney general counsel Horacio Gutierrez and approved by CEO Robert Iger. The matter was not taken to the full board; negotiations were completed in a single day.10The New York Times. Disney Trump ABC Lawsuit
Where the $15 Million Went
The money was designated for the “Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Fund, Inc.,” a nonprofit incorporated on December 20, 2024, shortly after the settlement.12OpenSecrets. One of Trump’s Library Funds Has Mysteriously Dissolved Under the settlement, most of the escrow funds could not be released until the entity obtained 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status.13U.S. Senate – Senator Warren. Letter to ABC Re Trump Library Fund Donation
In September 2025, the Fund was administratively dissolved by the Florida Department of State after it failed to file a mandatory annual report. Articles of dissolution were filed by the incorporator on December 29, 2025.14U.S. Senate – Senator Warren. Warren, Blumenthal, Stansbury Press Big Tech CEOs on Trump Settlements to Now-Dissolved Library Fund In May 2025, a separate nonprofit called the “Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Foundation, Inc.” had been created by a different incorporator.12OpenSecrets. One of Trump’s Library Funds Has Mysteriously Dissolved The Trump administration offered no public explanation for why two similar entities existed or what happened to the dissolved Fund’s assets.15WLRN. Trump Presidential Library Nonprofit Miami
In March 2026, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Richard Blumenthal, along with Representative Melanie Stansbury, sent letters to ABC, Meta, Paramount, and X demanding information about where the settlement funds had gone. The lawmakers identified roughly $63 million in corporate payments directed to the library effort.16U.S. Senate – Senator Warren. Letter to President Trump Re Presidential Library Fund Donations ABC confirmed its December 2024 wire transfer and disclosed that in March 2026, Trump’s counsel had requested authorization to release the escrowed funds to the successor Foundation, citing newly obtained IRS recognition of its 501(c)(3) status. The lawmakers said ABC’s response “fails to provide clarity on whether the ABC settlement has been transferred to the Foundation.”9U.S. Senate – Senator Warren. Warren, Blumenthal, Stansbury Press Trump on Missing Millions Donated to Dissolved Trump Library Fund
Federal law does not require donor disclosure for presidential libraries, and legislation to change that, including the Presidential Library Anti-Corruption Act, has stalled in Congress.12OpenSecrets. One of Trump’s Library Funds Has Mysteriously Dissolved
What the Settlement Signaled for Press Freedom
The ABC settlement was the first in a series of large corporate payouts to resolve Trump’s media-related lawsuits. In July 2025, Paramount settled a Trump suit over the editing of a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris, paying $16 million to the presidential library effort.17Associated Press. Paramount Will Pay $16 Million in Settlement With Trump Over 60 Minutes Interview
Reporters Without Borders called the ABC deal a “chilling precedent” that encourages media outlets to “bow before the president-elect’s legal threats rather than defend themselves.” Clayton Weimers, RSF USA’s executive director, said Trump “doesn’t need to win in court for his vindictive lawfare campaign to work.”18Reporters Without Borders. Trump’s Vengeful Lawsuits Against Media Lack Legal Basis, Harm American Press Freedom Seth Stern of the Freedom of the Press Foundation called the Paramount settlement “spineless” and “an invitation” for Trump to target other outlets.19The New York Times. Trump Paramount CBS 60 Minutes Lawsuit
The underlying legal standard remains a high bar. Under Sullivan, a public figure must prove a false statement was made with “actual malice,” meaning the speaker knew the statement was false or acted with reckless disregard for the truth. David Enrich of the New York Times assessed that ABC likely had a “pretty good chance of prevailing in court” under that standard. Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch have publicly called for the Court to reconsider the 1964 decision, and Trump has repeatedly criticized the standard.20PBS NewsHour. ABC News Settlement With Trump Raises Concerns About Press Freedom in His 2nd Term As of early 2026, the Supreme Court has not secured the four votes needed to take up a case that would revisit Sullivan, and two of the three justices Trump appointed during his first term have shown no interest in overturning it.21Phelps Dunbar. Fears That Trump’s Judicial Appointments Will Overturn New York Times v. Sullivan Unlikely to Be Realized