Judge rules in favor of BuzzFeed in Trump dossier lawsuit

By The Associated Press December 19, 2018 at 6:48pm

MIAMI (AP) — A federal judge has ruled in favor of BuzzFeed, which had been sued by a businessman for defamation over its publication of an unproven dossier on President Donald Trump’s purported activities involving Russia and allegations of Russian interference during the 2016 U.S. election.

Judge Ursula Ungaro ruled Wednesday in Miami federal court that BuzzFeed cannot be found liable for publishing a document that had become the subject of official government conduct.

Businessman Aleksej Gubarev said he and his companies were falsely linked in the dossier to Russia-backed computer hacking of Democratic Party figures. Gubarev, who is based in Cyprus, sought unspecified damages from BuzzFeed and its top editor, Ben Smith, for the lawsuit’s libel and slander claims.

The judge said BuzzFeed’s article was “fair and true.”

Gubarev has filed a notice of appeal.

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