Trump Accuses BBC of Harassment After It Asks Court to Help Subpoena His Family

The broadcaster wants to compel Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Jared Kushner to provide evidence relating to the events of Jan. 6, 2021.

President Donald Trump's children and others, including (L–R) Kimberly Guilfoyle, Donald Trump Jr., Jared Kushner, Eric Trump, Ivanka Trump, Lara Trump, Michael Boulos, and Tiffany Trump, walk onto the White House North Portico following the funeral of Robert Trump, on Aug. 21, 2020. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

U.S. President Donald Trump’s legal team has accused the BBC of harassment after it asked a court for help obtaining documents and testimony from members of the president’s family as part of its defense in his $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the broadcaster.

The BBC’s lawyers argued that the president’s oldest son, Donald Trump Jr.; his daughter Ivanka Trump; and her husband, Jared Kushner, all have “personal knowledge” and records relevant to claims against the British corporation, according to a filing in federal court in Miami on Aug. 14.

The broadcaster has been unable to serve subpoenas because the three have Secret Service protection as well as other security personnel around them, the filing says.

Donald Trump filed the lawsuit in December 2025, seeking $10 billion in damages from the BBC, accusing it of defamation as well as deceptive and unfair trade practices, which he said harmed his businesses as well as his reputation.

The case centers around the BBC’s editing of a speech the president made on Jan. 6, 2021, before the U.S. Capitol was breached.

Trump Refused Subpoenas

The latest filing states that the Trump family members had knowledge of issues relevant to the lawsuit’s argument “that it would be materially false to imply that [the president] incited violence” at the Capitol.

The filing claims that both Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump were present in the Oval Office when the president was revising his speech, adding that Donald Trump Jr. also spoke with his father shortly after the breach.

The filing says the president refused to accept the subpoenas from the BBC on behalf of his daughter and son-in-law, or to direct the Secret Service to allow the orders to be served.

The broadcaster has now asked the court to allow the subpoenas to be served by email and certified mail.

The judge has given the president’s legal team until Aug. 21 to respond to the BBC’s request.

The entrance to the BBC’s Broadcasting House, in London on Nov. 12, 2025. Leon Neal/Getty Images

‘Abusing the Deposition Process’

A spokesman for Donald Trump’s legal team said in a statement shared with The Epoch Times that “the BBC is simply trying to distract away from [its] own obvious liability.”

“The BBC intentionally defamed President Donald J. Trump, and now the BBC is seeking to harass him, his family, and supporters by abusing the deposition process,” his legal team said in a statement.

In its “Panorama” program broadcast on Oct. 28, 2024, the broadcaster spliced together portions of the president’s speech in a way that appeared to show him directly urging supporters to attack the Capitol, and omitted a lengthy section in which he called for peaceful protest.

The lawsuit claims that the BBC editing was “a brazen attempt to interfere in and influence” the 2024 presidential election, in which Donald Trump defeated Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris.

The BBC apologized for the editing, which came to light through a leaked internal report in November 2025, and maintains that it was an unintentional error and does not meet the legal threshold for defamation.

BBC Director-General Tim Davie and CEO of news Deborah Turness both resigned amid the scandal around alleged institutional bias at the corporation.

A trial date for the case was provisionally set for next February, after the BBC failed to have the lawsuit thrown out.

Temporary Reprieve

A  judge on Aug. 6 granted Donald Trump a reprieve from an order that he provide details of his business empire’s financial performance as part of the discovery process.

The order would have compelled the president to hand over tax returns, financial statements, and ownership records for some 400 corporate entities owned by the Trump family trust.

Judge Roy Altman of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida agreed to halt that order while he considers an amended complaint from the president that would narrow his claim from harms to his businesses to reputational damage.

Donald Trump’s legal team previously accused the BBC of a “fishing expedition” with subpoenas designed to “harass” former officials.

Alejandro Brito, counsel for the president, has described the BBC’s “sweeping” requests for documents as “oppressive.”

He has opposed the BBC’s requests for records of the president’s conversations with aides relating to the events of Jan. 6, as well as subpoenas issued to federal agencies and former officials.

The BBC stated that it does not comment on ongoing legal proceedings.