The BBC is moving to put three of Donald Trump’s closest family members on the witness stand. In a new court filing, lawyers for the British broadcaster are seeking to subpoena Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Jared Kushner for both documents and sworn testimony in Trump’s $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the network.
The network’s argument is blunt: all three were close enough to the president to speak directly to what he actually intended when he addressed a large crowd at the Ellipse in Washington on January 6, 2021 — the morning the U.S. Capitol was stormed.
How the Lawsuit Started
The case traces back to a 2024 edition of the BBC’s flagship documentary program, Panorama. Trump alleges the program edited together separate portions of his January 6 speech, splicing remarks delivered at different points in the address so they appeared to form one continuous passage. The result, his lawyers argue, created the false impression that he had directly called for violent action against the Capitol.
Trump responded with a defamation claim seeking $10 billion in damages — one of the largest figures ever attached to a lawsuit against a news organization. The editing controversy has already had consequences inside the BBC, and the litigation has become a closely watched test of how far a public figure can go in suing a broadcaster over how his own words were presented.
Why the Family Members
To defend the broadcast, the BBC’s attorneys say they need to establish what Trump meant that day — and they are pointing to the people who were physically closest to him. Drawing largely on testimony gathered by the House select committee that investigated January 6, the filing states that Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump were present as the president revised his speech and were on hand at the Ellipse as he delivered it.
The filing also notes that Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and a former senior White House adviser, drafted a proposed statement for the president condemning the violence as it unfolded. In the BBC’s telling, that makes all three witnesses to the president’s state of mind and intentions — the central question in a defamation fight over what his speech was really meant to convey.
A Problem With Serving the Papers
There is a complication. The BBC says it cannot serve the subpoenas the usual way. According to reports, the network’s legal team was physically blocked by police while trying to hand court documents to Ivanka Trump and Kushner at their Miami home.
Because all three family members have Secret Service protection, in-person service — which courts typically require — has proven impossible. As a result, the BBC has asked the judge for permission to serve them through alternative methods. The court must grant that request before the subpoenas can move forward.
What Happens Next
If the judge signs off, three of the most recognizable members of Trump’s inner circle could be compelled to answer questions under oath about what the president intended on the morning of January 6. That would transform a media lawsuit into a proceeding that reaches deep into the Trump family, and it would force testimony on one of the most contested moments in recent American history.
For now, the decision rests with the court. Whether family members should be compelled to testify about a sitting president’s private intentions is a question with implications far beyond this single case.
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