President Donald Trump asked a judge to order Rupert Murdoch to sit for a deposition within 15 days in the president’s $10 billion libel lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal over a story about Jeffrey Epstein, arguing an expedited schedule is justified due to the executive’s advanced age.

In a court filing Monday, Trump’s lawyer said Murdoch should be required to answer preliminary questions so they can be preserved for trial, even though the suit was just filed last week. Murdoch, 94, has suffered “multiple health issues throughout his life” and has had recent health scares, according to the filing, which cites media reports earlier this year that Murdoch collapsed during a breakfast with a top executive in London.

“Taken together, these factors weigh heavily in determining that Murdoch would be unavailable for in-person testimony at trial,” Trump’s lawyer said in the filing in federal court in Miami.

Trump, 79, sued July 18, accusing Murdoch, News Corp. and Wall Street Journal publisher Dow Jones & Co. of maligning his character in a story that said he’d once sent a suggestive birthday letter to Epstein, who was charged with sex trafficking in 2019 and died in custody. The suit comes as Trump is fighting a firestorm of criticism over the government’s handling of documents related to the late, disgraced financier.

News Corp. didn’t respond to a message seeking comment. Dow Jones has said it stands by the report and that it will defend itself in court.

In Monday’s filing, Trump’s attorney said Murdoch’s insight is crucial because the Wall Street Journal published the article after Trump “spoke directly with Murdoch and advised him that the letter referenced in the article was fake.”

“Murdoch’s direct involvement further underscores defendants’ actual malice and intent behind the decision to publish the false, defamatory, disparaging, and inflammatory statements about President Trump identified in the complaint,” according to the filing.

The filing argues that Murdoch, News Corp.’s chairman emeritus, would have the upper hand in an expedited deposition because the president hasn’t yet obtained any records through the usual exchange of evidence known as discovery.

“Murdoch has access to all the information related to the article and the decision behind publishing it,” Trump’s lawyer said in the filing. “On the other hand, President Trump has very limited information related to the article and lacks the same access to information that Murdoch does.”

Sealed documents

The Trump administration has been seeking to unseal grand jury transcripts related to Epstein following claims that U.S. officials were hiding documents and information. Many Trump supporters have demanded the release of the files for years, believing they would reveal the names of powerful people who associated with Epstein and may have been involved in his crimes.

Last week, a federal judge in Florida denied the government’s request related to grand jury proceedings in 2005 and 2007, saying she is bound by local court rulings that restrict the release of such records. Two judges in New York are weighing government requests in parallel criminal cases of Epstein and his convicted former associate, Ghislaine Maxwell.

The defamation case is Trump v. Dow Jones & Co., Case No. 1:25-cv-23232, US District Court for the Southern District of Florida (Miami).

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With assistance from Chris Dolmetsch.

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