Donald Trump claims he suffered ‘distress’ from leaked dossier alleging Russian ties during London court case
- Trump said he’d suffered ‘damage and distress’ from the publication of a dossier alleging ties between the Kremlin and his successful run to the White House
- The Steele dossier made global headlines when it was leaked in January 2017 with allegations Trump’s campaign had been compromised by Russian security service
Donald Trump said he’d suffered “personal and reputational damage and distress” from the publication of the notorious dossier that alleged ties between the Kremlin and the former US president’s successful run to the White House.
Trump kicked off his data collection suit in a London court against ex-MI6 agent Christopher Steele’s Orbis business intelligence firm on Monday, seeking a judge’s ruling that statements in the dossier were false. His lawyers said Trump intends to give evidence at the later trial.
The report contains “shocking and scandalous claims about the conduct of President Trump,” his lawyer Hugh Tomlinson said at the outset of the two-day hearing in London.
The Steele dossier made headlines around the world when it was leaked to BuzzFeed in January 2017 with allegations that the presidential campaign had been compromised by the Russian security service, and said Trump engaged in “perverted sexual acts”.
Many of the allegations were never substantiated. Trump has previously criticised what he described as Steele’s “fake dossier” and his lawyers said in court filings made public on Monday that the report is “egregiously inaccurate”.
With the London lawsuit, Trump is opening a new front in his already crowded legal calendar. In the US, he faces four prosecutions, on top of two civil trials, as he runs to regain the White House. He’s expected to attend the civil fraud trial against him in New York this week.
Steele, who Trump once called a “low-life” was retained by a Washington-based research firm in June 2016 to examine Trump’s links to Russia. The Democratic National Committee and the campaign of Hillary Clinton hired Fusion GPS after Trump was headed for the nomination.
