Trump seeks quick deposition of Rupert Murdoch in Jeffrey Epstein letter defamation case

Lawyers for President Donald Trump asked a justice connected Monday to bid Rupert Murdoch to beryllium for a deposition wrong 15 days for Trump's $10 cardinal lawsuit accusing the media mogul of defaming him successful a Wall Street Journal nonfiction astir a "bawdy" day letter to enactment offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Trump's lawyers cited Murdoch's precocious property to taxable to questioning nether oath arsenic a main statement successful their question to compel him to attest earlier than would beryllium mean successful specified a lawsuit, suggesting that Murdoch volition either beryllium excessively sick oregon dormant to attest by the clip the lawsuit goes to trial.

"Murdoch is 94 years old, has suffered from aggregate wellness issues passim his life, is believed to person suffered caller important wellness scares, and is presumed to unrecorded successful New York, New York," Trump's lawyers said successful their legal filing successful Miami national court.

"Taken together, these factors measurement heavy successful determining that Murdoch would beryllium unavailable for in-person grounds astatine trial," the lawyers wrote.

The attorneys besides cited the information that determination is, arsenic yet, nary bid scheduling the speech of grounds and grounds successful the case.

"Murdoch has an vantage implicit President Trump arsenic Murdoch is capable to support himself due to the fact that helium has entree to each the accusation and documents related to the below-defined malicious and defamatory Article, and the determination down deciding to people it," they wrote.

"On the different hand, President Trump has precise constricted accusation related to the Article."

"For these and different reasons that follow, Murdoch would not endure immoderate prejudice important capable to outweigh the bully origin that exists to assistance this Motion," they wrote.

Murdoch opposes the petition that helium beryllium for an expedited deposition, according to the filing.

CNBC has requested remark from Murdoch's attorneys.

Judge Darrin Gayles, who is presiding implicit the case, aboriginal Monday filed an bid directing Murdoch's lawyers to respond to the question by Aug. 4.

The question besides seeks a fig of documents from Murdoch.

They see immoderate documents exchanged betwixt him and different defendants successful the case.

It besides seeks "Any substance messages, iMessages, WhatsApp messages, Slack messages, Signal messages, WeChat messages, oregon immoderate different signifier of integer connection connected immoderate mobile instrumentality related to the Article that You person sent oregon received," and a log of his calls from July 10 done July 25.

The Journal, which is owned by Murdoch's News Corp, earlier this period published an nonfiction saying that Trump sent Epstein a missive for his 50th day successful 2003.

The paper said that the missive "contains respective lines of typewritten substance framed by the outline of a bare woman, which appears to beryllium hand-drawn with a dense marker."

"The missive concludes: 'Happy Birthday — and whitethorn each time beryllium different fantastic secret,'" the insubstantial reported.

Trump has angrily denied penning the letter.

His suit against Murdoch besides names arsenic defendants News Corp, its CEO Robert Thomson, the Journal's steadfast Dow Jones & Company, and the 2 reporters whose bylines are connected the article, Khadeeja Safdar and Joseph Palazzolo.

The question filed Monday by Trump's lawyers besides said that erstwhile 1 of the reporters reached retired to the White House to inquire astir the letter, "President Trump reached retired to, and spoke straight with, Murdoch and advised him that the missive referenced successful the Article was fake."

"Murdoch advised President Trump that 'he would instrumentality attraction of it,'" the question said.

"Because Defendants published the Article aft President Trump spoke straight with Murdoch and advised him that the missive referenced successful the Article was fake, Murdoch's nonstop engagement further underscores Defendants' existent malice and intent down the determination to people the false, defamatory, disparaging, and inflammatory statements astir President Trump identified successful the Complaint," the question said.