CNBC reported Thursday, citing other outlets, that U.S. Magistrate Judge Enjoliqué Lett ordered President Donald Trump to testify under oath by Dec. 11 in his $10 billion defamation case against the British Broadcasting Corp. (BBC). Trump’s attorneys had proposed a deposition between Jan. 11 and Jan. 22.
CNBC, citing Politico, reported that Lett warned Trump’s lawyers the complaint could be dismissed if he failed to comply with court orders requiring him to provide records relevant to the case.
BBC attorney Charles Tobin told Lett that Trump had agreed to a deposition on Oct. 16 but canceled it, citing “a matter of national importance,” The Associated Press reported, according to CNBC. Tobin told the judge that Trump instead spent the date campaigning in Georgia, the AP reported.
The complaint says editing in the BBC’s Panorama documentary, “Trump: A Second Chance,” recast Trump’s Jan. 6, 2021, speech outside the White House as a direct call for supporters to attack the U.S. Capitol. The BBC chair apologized for the editing shortly before the suit was filed.
In a Nov. 13, 2025, statement, the broadcaster said it regretted how the clip was edited but disputed that the case had grounds for a defamation claim.
