Trump v. ABC News / George Stephanopoulos

Case Overview

In 2024, ABC News agreed to a $15 million settlement after anchor George Stephanopoulos repeatedly stated on air that Donald Trump had been found liable for rape — a legally false characterization of the jury verdict in the E. Jean Carroll civil case. Brito PLLC attorney Alejandro Brito filed suit in the Southern District of Florida, survived a motion to dismiss before Judge Cecilia Altonaga, and fought to secure one of the largest defamation settlements in recent memory — plus $1 million in attorney's fees paid directly to the firm.

Legal Significance

The case turned on the distinction between the jury's actual finding — liability for 'sexual abuse' under New York law — and Stephanopoulos's repeated, on-air characterization of it as 'rape.' Brito PLLC successfully argued that a false statement of fact, made by a major network anchor to millions of viewers, satisfies the actual malice standard when the correct legal characterization was publicly available. Surviving the motion to dismiss before Judge Altonaga set the stage for settlement, as ABC faced the prospect of discovery into its editorial decision-making. The $15 million payment — one of the largest defamation settlements in recent broadcast history — plus $1 million in direct attorney's fees, established Brito PLLC as a national force in high-stakes media defamation.

Press Coverage