President Donald Trump achieved a notable legal success on Wednesday, May 28, 2025, when Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeal denied the Pulitzer Prize Board’s request to delay his defamation lawsuit until after his presidential term concludes. The court stated that “such privileges are afforded to the President alone, not to his litigation adversaries.”
This ruling permits Trump’s 2022 defamation lawsuit against the Pulitzer Prize Board to continue without interruption. Trump initiated the lawsuit in December 2022 in Okeechobee County, Florida, challenging the board’s 2018 awards to The New York Times and The Washington Post for their reporting on alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election and potential links to Trump’s campaign.
In January 2025, the Pulitzer Prize Board attempted to suspend proceedings until Trump completed his current term, having previously failed with a similar motion in the trial court. The board argued that moving forward with the lawsuit could present constitutional challenges and conflicts, as Trump would be acting as a plaintiff in a state court case involving issues potentially related to his presidential duties.
The board referenced the supremacy and take care clauses of the U.S. Constitution in their argument, asserting that allowing Trump to claim constitutional protection to delay cases because of his office, without extending the same to them, would breach due process. They also mentioned Trump’s past use of presidential immunity in other lawsuits, including the case brought by former “Apprentice” contestant Summer Zervos.
However, the Florida appellate court dismissed these arguments in its seven-page opinion. The judges distinguished this case from others in which Trump was a defendant, emphasizing that Trump is the plaintiff who initiated this litigation voluntarily. The court noted that when a public official chooses to initiate legal action, it is assumed that they have already considered the impact on their official duties.
The court emphasized that immunities and privileges are specifically for the benefit of the individuals for whom they are intended, and such privileges cannot be extended to others. The judges noted that Trump has been actively involved in the proceedings and has not chosen to invoke a privilege to stop the case, despite potentially having the authority to do so.
Trump acknowledged the court’s decision on Truth Social on Thursday morning, referring to it as a significant victory in his lawsuit against what he called the illegal and defamatory award for misleading stories on the Russia investigation. He claimed that the outlets received Pulitzer Prizes for incorrect reporting and suggested they should return their awards.
The lawsuit focuses on the board’s public defense of its 2018 National Reporting awards. The Pulitzer Prize Board had commended the outlets for their coverage, describing it as well-sourced and persistently reported. In July 2022, the board issued a statement defending its decision to award the prizes, stating that none of the content in the winning entries was contradicted by facts that emerged after the prizes were granted.
Trump contends that the 19-member board honored the newspapers for misleading the American public about what he describes as the now-disproven theory of collusion with Russia. The coverage led to federal investigations, including Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s inquiry, which found no definitive evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government.
Some of the headlines contributing to the Pulitzer awards included “The Fake Americans Russia Created to Influence the Election” from The New York Times and “Trump Revealed Highly Classified Information to Russian Foreign Minister and Ambassador” from The Washington Post. Many stories detailed facts about the FBI and Mueller’s investigation into potential Trump-Russia connections, though other stories made claims that have since been disputed.
The Pulitzer Prize Board responded to the court’s ruling, indicating that allowing the case to proceed enables Trump to use state courts as both a sword and a shield, allowing him to pursue action against anyone he chooses in state court while simultaneously claiming immunity for himself when convenient. The board stated that it is evaluating next steps and will continue to defend journalism and First Amendment rights.
This represents another setback for the Pulitzer Prize Board in the Trump lawsuit. The appeals court had previously denied the board’s motion in February to dismiss the lawsuit on the grounds of jurisdiction. Additionally, District Judge Robert Pegg, who is overseeing the case, rejected the board’s request to protect internal communications regarding the award and ruled against the board in March when it sought a delay due to Trump’s workload.
The decision allows Trump’s lawsuit to advance to discovery, potentially requiring the Pulitzer Prize Board and related media organizations to disclose internal communications related to the controversial award. Trump’s legal team has indicated plans to seek depositions and documents that could reveal whether the board disregarded doubts about the accuracy of the reporting it honored.
