The BBC is seeking court permission to subpoena President Donald Trump’s family members over their knowledge of his Jan. 6, 2021, speech, as the broadcaster fights a $10 billion defamation lawsuit brought by Trump.
The lawsuit stems from a 2024 BBC documentary that edited together separate portions of Trump’s speech at the Ellipse, which Trump alleges falsely portrayed him as endorsing violence ahead of the Capitol riot. The BBC has apologized for the editing, but the broadcaster maintains that the editing does not provide valid grounds for Trump’s defamation claim.
In a court filing on Friday, the BBC asked a federal judge to authorize alternative methods of serving subpoenas on Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Jared Kushner, arguing that all three have firsthand knowledge relevant to Trump’s intent and actions surrounding the speech.
The BBC’s attorneys argued that Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump were “without question” in a position to know about the president’s intentions because both were in the Oval Office while Trump was still revising his speech on Jan. 6. According to transcripts cited in the filing, they were present during the period when Trump spoke with then-Vice President Mike Pence in an unsuccessful effort to persuade Pence not to certify the 2020 election results. The BBC said last-minute additions to the speech, including remarks directed at Pence, followed that conversation.
Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump also traveled from the White House to the Ellipse and watched Trump deliver the speech and the crowd’s reaction, according to testimony they gave to the House Jan. 6 committee.
The BBC says Ivanka Trump then returned to the White House, where she observed Trump’s reaction to news that violence had broken out at the Capitol and communicated directly with him about issuing a public response.
Trump Jr. also communicated with then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows while the violence was underway, urging Trump to “condemn this s***. ASAP.” He later spoke directly with his father, according to the testimony cited by the BBC.
According to his testimony to the Jan. 6 committee, Kushner spoke with then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who told him the situation at the Capitol was “getting really ugly.” Kushner also drafted a proposed statement for Trump condemning the violence and worked with other senior officials on a statement ultimately issued as Congress resumed certifying the election results early on Jan. 7.
The BBC argued that the testimony makes the three family members possibly important witnesses in the defamation case.
BBC lawyers attempted to serve subpoenas on Kushner and Ivanka Trump at their home in Miami in May, but police blocked the attempts. A Secret Service lawyer subsequently told the BBC that the agency was not authorized to accept subpoenas on behalf of the individuals.
A separate attempt to serve Trump Jr. at Trump Tower in New York was also unsuccessful, with building security preventing the BBC from serving the document. The Secret Service would likewise prevent service at Trump Jr.’s home.
The BBC said it has attempted to resolve the issue without court intervention. It asked Trump to accept service on behalf of the three witnesses, to direct the Secret Service to allow service, and to consent to the broadcaster’s request for alternative service. Trump declined each request, according to the filing.
The BBC is now asking the court to authorize service through methods other than personal delivery that are “reasonably calculated to ensure receipt” of the subpoenas by the witnesses.