The Associated Press reports that a British judge has ordered President Trump to pay more than 625,000 pounds ($820,000) in legal costs to Orbis Business Intelligence, the company he unsuccessfully sued over a dossier alleging he took part in sex acts in Russia.
Orbis was founded by Christopher Steele, a former British intelligence officer who was paid by Democrats to compile the 2016 dossier. The dossier, which was released shortly before his first inauguration, contained highly inflammatory and uncorrobated allegations about Trump’s behavior, including allegations of encounters with Russian prosecutes and “golden showers.” The dossier claimed that Trump had been “compromised” by Russia’s security service.
Trump sued Orbis in 2022 over the dossier, but his claim was dismissed by Judge Karen Steyn in February, 2024 because the judge found the case was “bound to fail,” in part because Trump had waited several years to file the suit.
In March, Judge Steyn ordered Trump to pay Orbis 300,000 pounds in legal fees. The AP reports that after Trump failed to pay the first installment, a hearing was held without him to decide the full bill. On Thursday, Judge Jason Rowley said that the president must pay 626,058.98 pounds (approximately USD $807,000.00 at Saturday’s rates), with interest accruing daily at 12%.