(NewsNation) — ABC News and anchor George Stephanopoulos will pay President-elect Donald Trump $15 million as part of a defamation lawsuit settlement.
Court documents publicly filed on Saturday and obtained by NewsNation detailed the settlement’s conditions. According to the filing, the $15 million must be paid to an escrow account of Trump’s — to fund a future presidential library.
It also stipulates that Stephanopoulos and ABC News will issue “regret statements” on the March 10, 2024, interview that prompted the president-elect to file a libel suit in the first place.
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Stephanopoulos repeatedly said during a “This Week” interview that a jury found Trump “liable for rape” in a lawsuit brought by advice columnist E. Jean Carroll. The jury had found Trump liable for sexual abuse under New York law, but not rape.
ABC also agreed to pay $1 million in attorneys’ fees and add an editors’ note to the bottom of the relevant article, court documents show.
“We are pleased that the parties have reached an agreement to dismiss the lawsuit on the terms in the court filing,” an ABC News spokesperson said in a statement to NewsNation partner The Hill.
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The settlement enables both the anchor and Trump to avoid sitting for court-ordered depositions next week.
Trump’s legal team says they will let the filing speak for itself but the president-elect might post on Truth Social, a source tells NewsNation.
NewsNation partner The Hill contributed to this report.
