ABC News and its lead anchor, George Stephanopoulos, have reached a settlement with President-elect Donald Trump in his defamation lawsuit, avoiding a costly trial. As part of the agreement, ABC will pay $15 million to fund a charitable contribution toward a future presidential foundation and museum to be established by Trump. Additionally, the network will cover $1 million in attorney fees for Trump’s legal team.
Settlement Details
The settlement, publicly filed on Saturday, includes a clause requiring ABC News and Stephanopoulos to issue statements of regret. These statements will be added as an editor’s note to a March 10, 2024, online article that included comments triggering Trump’s defamation suit.
The editor’s note reads:
“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.”
The dispute stems from Stephanopoulos’ repeated assertions during the interview that Trump had been found “liable for rape” in a civil case involving writer E. Jean Carroll. Trump’s legal team argued that this was a false characterization, as the jury had determined Trump was liable for “sexual abuse,” not rape, under New York law—a legal distinction that Stephanopoulos failed to acknowledge during the interview.
Background of the Defamation Case
Trump filed the defamation suit earlier this year after Stephanopoulos repeatedly claimed that Trump had been found guilty of rape. The interview, which took place with Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.), included a segment where Stephanopoulos referenced a clip of Mace discussing her experience as a victim of sexual assault.
“You’ve endorsed Donald Trump for president. Judges and two separate juries have found him liable for rape and for defaming the victim of that rape,” Stephanopoulos stated multiple times during the contentious exchange.
Here is the video ?
Trump sued George Stephanopoulos after this interview with Nancy Mace for defamation, and Stephanopoulos is now scheduled for a deposition next week
Raise your hand ?? if you hope Trump gets every dime he can outta Stephanopoulos pic.twitter.com/kGZnsHML6G
— @Chicago1Ray ?? (@Chicago1Ray) December 13, 2024
While Judge Lewis Kaplan later wrote in a ruling that Carroll’s evidence supported a commonly understood definition of rape, the jury’s verdict found Trump liable for sexual abuse rather than rape under New York’s legal definitions.
Initially, Stephanopoulos was defiant in response to Trump’s lawsuit, appearing on CBS’s The Late Show with Stephen Colbert to defend his reporting. “Trump sued me because I used the word ‘rape,’ even though a judge said that’s in fact what did happen. We filed a motion to dismiss,” Stephanopoulos said at the time.
Pre-Trial Developments
The settlement came shortly after U.S. Magistrate Judge Lisette M. Reid ordered both Trump and Stephanopoulos to sit for depositions ahead of a December 24 deadline for summary judgment motions. Rather than proceed to trial, both parties signed and filed the settlement agreement in the Southern District of Florida Federal Court.
Trump’s legal team, led by Florida attorneys Alejandro Brito and Richard Klugh, also represents him in his ongoing legal battle against CNN.
Trump’s Legal Momentum
The settlement adds to a series of recent legal victories for Trump and his team, led by senior legal adviser Boris Epshteyn.
- Election Case Dismissed: Federal Judge Tanya Chutkan granted Special Counsel Jack Smith’s request to dismiss his case against Trump related to the 2020 election.
- Classified Records Case Dropped: Smith’s appeal in the classified documents case was also dismissed after a judge ruled his appointment as special counsel was unlawful.
- Manhattan DA Case: Judge Juan Merchan granted Trump’s motion to dismiss charges in Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s case, removing the sentencing date from the calendar.
Trump is also suing CBS News for $10 billion, accusing the network of “deceptive conduct” aimed at interfering with the 2024 election during an October interview with Vice President Kamala Harris.