Donald Trump's personal attorney Michael Cohen has filed defamation lawsuits against BuzzFeed News and Fusion GPS over the Steele dossier.
The Fusion GPS lawsuit, which was filed at a federal court level, seeks $100 million in damages. A separate amount in damages for the BuzzFeed lawsuit, which was filed at the state court level, will be determined at trial, according to court documents obtained by POLITICO.
Cohen tweeted about the Buzzfeed suit Tuesday:
Enough is enough of the #fake #RussianDossier. Just filed a defamation action against @BuzzFeedNews for publishing the lie filled document on @POTUS @realDonaldTrump and me!
— Michael Cohen (@MichaelCohen212) January 10, 2018
Buzzfeed published the dossier on January 10, 2017 which, as CNBC reporter Christina Wilkie notes, is almost exactly one year ago and a significant detail.
Statute of limitations for defamation in NY is 1 year, and Buzzfeed published the dossier on January 10, so today, Jan 9, is the last possible day Cohen could have sued them for defamation. Hardly seems like an accident. https://t.co/SlHHvw6xSV
— Christina Wilkie (@christinawilkie) January 10, 2018
The dossier claims that Cohen met with Russian operatives somewhere in Europe, including Prague, to attend a meeting to “clean up the mess” created by public disclosures of other Trump associates’ reported ties to Russia.
Cohen has denied that a Prague meeting occurred, saying that he has never been to the Czech Republic. In May 2017, Cohen provied a copy of his passport to BuzzFeed that showed it had been stamped for entry and exit to the United Kingdom and Italy.
Cohen alleges he "sustained significant financial and reputational damages" due to the publication of the dossier on BuzzFeed's website, according to court documents in the BuzzFeed lawsuit.
CNN:
When reached by phone on Tuesday night, Cohen further criticized the "lie-filled" dossier.
"Let me be totally clear that the allegations raised against me in the public square and raised largely by BuzzFeed, Fusion GPS and others in the press are based upon misinformation, unnamed or unverifiable sources," Cohen told CNN. "Their actions are so malicious, despicable and reckless, one can only presume that their motives were intentional."
Trump lawyer files lawsuits against BuzzFeed, Fusion GPS over dossier (CNN)
Trump lawyer Cohen sues Fusion GPS, BuzzFeed over Steele dossier (Politico)