Judge dismisses Trump’s lawsuit against Mary Trump and the New York Times

A New York judge on Wednesday has tossed a lawsuit Donald Trump filed against The New York Times and his niece, Mary Trump, The Daily Beast reports.

Trump’s 2021 lawsuit alleged a “insidious plot” between the newspaper and his niece to obtain his private tax records for a 2018 Pulitzer-winning article.

New York Supreme Court Justice Robert R. Reed in his ruling filed Wednesday afternoon wrote that the claims “fail as a matter of constitutional law” and determined that the NYT’s reporting was “the very core of protected First Amendment activity.”

CNN media reporter Oliver Darcy obtained a statement from a New York Times spokesperson that said: "The New York Times is pleased with the judge's decision today. It is an important precedent reaffirming that the press is protected when it engages in routine newsgathering to obtain information of vital importance to the public."