Earlier this month Melania Trump filed a lawsuit against Mail Media, the parent company of the Daily Mail, stating that an article published by the Daily Mail, falsely claimed she was an elite escort in the sex business, which in turn destroyed her chances of creating “multi-million dollar business relationships” as FLOTUS.
The suit was initially filed claiming the story by the Mail harmed her, “unique, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” to “launch a broad-based commercial brand in multiple product categories, each of which could have garnered multi-million dollar business relationships.” Her complaint cited her “multi-year term during which the plaintiff is one of the most photographed women in the world,” and according to Buzzfeed, she planned to develop products including apparel, shoes, jewelry, cosmetics, hair care, skin care, and fragrances within her brand.
Once the suit was made public, Trump received harsh criticism from many people, claiming she was attempting to cash in on her position as FLOTUS and use this is an opportunity to build her brand. However, her lawyer denied any allegations and reported to the Guardian, that the lawsuit had been misinterpreted. He stated, “The First Lady has no intention of using her position for profit and will not do so. It is not a possibility.”
Trump recently settled a similar defamation case with a Maryland based-blogger, who claimed Trump was a former escort. According to the Daily Mail suit, the judge in the Maryland blogger case stated in court, “The court believes most people, when they hear the words ‘high-end escort’ that describes a prostitute. There could be no more defamatory statement than to call a woman a prostitute.” The blogger retracted her statement and was forced to pay a “substantial sum” of money to Trump as part of their settlement.
On Friday of last week, the Daily Mail claim was refiled in New York and did not mention any of Trump’s personal brand or business ventures, but rather cited her emotional distress as the leading cause in filing this claim.