The New York Times building in Manhattan, New York, on September 16, 2025. Kylie Cooper/Reuters

In a ruling dripping with derision, a federal judge has rejected President Trump’s defamation lawsuit against The New York Times, asserting that the rambling 85-page suit did not follow federal rules for filing civil complaints. The president’s team has been given a month to refile.

Judge Steven D. Merryday of the US District Court for the Middle District of Florida said Friday that the suit “stands unmistakably and inexcusably athwart the requirements of Rule 8” of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

Merryday said Trump’s legal team can refile in the next four weeks, but must keep the complaint to 40 pages or fewer.

A complaint is not supposed to be “a public forum for vituperation and

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