Rupert Murdoch has agreed to provide regular health updates to President Donald Trump’s legal team as part of a deal to delay his deposition in Trump’s $10 billion libel lawsuit. Murdoch — who controls Wall Street Journal parent company News Corp — is being sued by Trump over a recent article that claimed he sent a birthday letter to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a claim Trump denies.
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Trump’s legal team pushes for speed
According to a court filing jointly submitted by Trump and Murdoch’s legal teams, Murdoch must submit a sworn declaration within three days of the judge approving the deal, detailing his current health condition. He also agreed to a system that will notify Trump’s team of any significant changes to his health.
“Defendant Murdoch has further agreed to provide regularly scheduled updates to Plaintiff regarding his health, including a mechanism for him to alert the Plaintiff if there is a material change to his health,” the filing states.
The agreement emerged after Trump’s lawyers pushed for an expedited deposition, warning in a court filing that Murdoch’s age and declining health might prevent him from testifying later in the case.
“Murdoch is 94 years old, has suffered from multiple health issues throughout his life, is believed to have suffered recent significant health scares… Taken together, these factors weigh heavily in determining that Murdoch would be unavailable for in-person testimony at trial,” the filing states.
The new agreement delays Murdoch’s deposition until after the judge decides whether to toss out the case. If the lawsuit moves forward, Murdoch would have 30 days to sit for questioning. If Murdoch doesn’t comply with the new terms, the agreement requires him to sit for an “expedited” deposition.
Lawsuit stems from Journal story over Epstein
The legal battle stems from a Wall Street Journal report that claimed Trump sent Epstein a “bawdy” birthday card in 2003. Trump denies writing the card and sued Murdoch, News Corp CEO Robert Thomson, Dow Jones & Co., and the two Journal reporters who wrote the article.
While Murdoch’s media empire — particularly Fox News — has long been seen as an ally of Trump, the lawsuit marks increased tensions between Trump and the mainstream media.
Judge likely to approve new agreement
The judge still needs to approve the agreement, but both sides have signed off, making approval more likely.
Neither Murdoch nor Trump is likely to be deposed in the case for months, according to Politico’s Josh Gerstein, who first reported on Monday’s filing, Aug. 4.
