Trump Ordered To Pay Legal Costs of Dismissed Lawsuit

President Donald Trump has been ordered to pay more than £625,000 in legal costs by a UK court after his lawsuit against former MI6 officer Christopher Steele over the controversial Russia dossier was dismissed without trial.

Key Insights

The High Court in London ruled Trump must pay £626,058.98 plus 12% daily interest after his lawsuit against Steele’s company was dismissed as “bound to fail” back in 2024.
Trump initially refused to pay an initial £290,000 ordered by the court, resulting in his exclusion from a hearing to determine the total legal bill.
The lawsuit concerned the “Steele dossier,” which contained unverified claims about Trump’s alleged ties to Russia that were published by BuzzFeed in 2017 without Steele’s authorization.
The case was dismissed without a ruling on the accuracy of the allegations.

UK Court Dismisses Trump’s Steele Dossier Claim

A London High Court judge has ordered President Donald Trump to pay £626,058.98 in legal costs after his lawsuit against Orbis Business Intelligence was dismissed last year. The company, founded by former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele, was at the center of controversy after producing what became known as the “Steele dossier” prior to Trump’s 2016 election victory. The document contained numerous unverified claims about Trump’s activities, including allegations that he had been compromised by Russian agents.

The lawsuit, filed under UK data protection laws in 2022, sought compensation for what Trump’s legal team described as “distress and reputational damage” caused by the dossier. However, High Court judge Karen Steyn determined in 2024 that there were “no compelling reasons” for the claim to proceed to trial. The judge dismissed the case in February last year without ruling on the truth of the allegations contained in the dossier, instead focusing on technical grounds related to data protection claims.

Trump Must Pay £625,000 Costs For Failed Suit — UK Courthttps://t.co/3UA7yJbtQP pic.twitter.com/TXFJMvmBfe

— Channels Television (@channelstv) April 3, 2025

Legal Cost Dispute Escalates

Following the dismissal of the lawsuit, Trump was initially ordered to pay £290,000 in legal costs. According to court documents, he refused to comply with this order, which resulted in his exclusion from a subsequent hearing to determine the total legal bill. Judge Rowley ultimately ordered Trump to pay the full amount of £626,058.98, describing the sum as “both reasonable and proportionate” given the complexity and high-profile nature of the case.

The court’s decision includes a provision for daily interest at a rate of 12%. Trump’s legal team had argued that the dossier was “egregiously inaccurate,” but the court determined that the case could not proceed based on the underlying legal claims, regardless of the content’s accuracy. The ruling marked a setback in Trump’s attempts to seek legal remedies against those involved in producing or disseminating the controversial document.

Controversial Dossier’s Background

The Steele dossier first came to public attention when BuzzFeed published it in January 2017, shortly before Trump’s inauguration. The document was compiled by Christopher Steele, a former MI6 officer, as part of opposition research initially funded by Republicans and later by Hillary Clinton’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee through the firm Fusion GPS. It contained numerous explosive but unverified claims, including allegations that Russian intelligence had compromising information on Trump that could be used for blackmail.

A key factor in the court’s dismissal was Orbis Business Intelligence’s argument that they were not responsible for the dossier’s publication. The company maintained that the report was not intended for public release and was published by BuzzFeed without their knowledge or consent. The dossier did contribute to aspects of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, which found evidence of Russian interference in the 2016 election but did not establish that Trump’s campaign had conspired with Russia.