Brigitte Macron's defamation lawsuit against Candace Owens has suffered its first legal hurdle after a judge ruled that the right-wing commentator could not be held personally liable.
uncertain
commentator → suffer → hurdle
The Macrons sued Owens and two Delaware-registered businesses associated with her in July last year over her lie-filled 'campaign of global humiliation', including an unfounded claim that the French first lady was born male.
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lady → sue → claim
Delaware Superior Court Judge Sheldon Rennie agreed in a Tuesday order that his court lacked jurisdiction over Ms Owens, who lives in Tennessee, but the defamation case against the businesses, Candace Owens LLC and Georgetom Inc., could continue for now because they were registered in Delaware.
The ruling means that if the Macrons were to prevail in the case, any judgment could not be assigned to Ms Owens, and it is likely that her personal assets would be protected.
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assets → agree → Owens
Rennie deferred judgment on Ms Owens' motion to dismiss the Macrons' litigation until the parties had briefed him further on how French defamation law and statutes of limitation intersect with US law.
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law → defer → law
Ms Owens thanked the judge in a social media statement, saying the case 'represents one of the grossest legal overreaches by a foreign government leader in human history — a sitting President's attempt to personally bankrupt a single podcaster from outside the nation in which he governs'.
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he → thank → which
In their lawsuit, the Macrons said Ms Owens touted false claims and conspiracy theories against them 'to promote her independent platform, gain notoriety, and make money'.
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Owens → say → money
The Macrons said these lies included claims that Mrs Macron, 73, was born under the name Jean-Michel Trogneux, the name of her older brother.
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Macron → say → brother
'Owens has dissected their appearance, their marriage, their friends, their family, and their personal history — twisting it all into a grotesque narrative designed to inflame and degrade,' the complaint said.
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complaint → dissect → narrative
A Delaware judge ruled that Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, can pursue their defamation lawsuit against two companies linked to Candace Owens, but not against Owens herself
The Macrons sued Owens (pictured) and two Delaware-registered businesses associated with her in July last year over her lie-filled 'campaign of global humiliation', including an unfounded claim that the French first lady was born male
'The result,' the complaint added, 'is relentless bullying on a worldwide scale.'
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complaint → rule → scale
Ms Owens started a podcast series called 'Becoming Brigitte' in 2024, in which she made false claims about Mrs Macron, including that she stole another person's identity and transitioned to female, and that the Macrons are blood relatives committing incest.
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Macrons → start → incest
The spurious claims about Mrs Macron's gender first came from a 2021 'investigation' published in a small, far-Right magazine accused of platforming antisemitism and conspiracy theories, called Faits et Documents (Facts & Documents).
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claims → come → antisemitism
The piece, co-authored by self-styled independent journalist Natacha Rey and Xavier Poussard, went unnoticed for some time.
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piece → co → time
That was until Ms Rey gave an interview on YouTube about her unfounded speculations with 'spiritual medium' Delphine Jégousse - alias Amandine Roy - in a four-hour video that went viral before France's 2022 presidential election.
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that → give → election
Though Ms Rey was found to have defamed Brigitte in September 2024, this didn't stop Owens from picking up the story.
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this → find → story
It comes as ten people who spread 'malicious' claims that the First Lady was born a man were found guilty of cyberbullying earlier this year.
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Lady → come → cyberbullying
A Paris court handed the defendants suspended prison sentences of up to eight months for the 'particularly degrading and insulting' comments about Mrs Macron.
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court → hand → Macron
Eight men and two women, aged 41 to 65, were accused of posting 'numerous' false claims that she was born a man and linking their 24-year age gap to paedophilia.
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she → accuse → paedophilia
Mrs Macron did not attend the two-day trial, which was held in October last year.
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which → attend → October
Speaking on TF1 national television after the sentencing, she said she launched legal proceedings to 'set an example' against harassment after some of the posts were viewed tens of thousands of times.
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some → speak → times
Her daughter, Tiphaine Auzière, testified about what she described as the 'deterioration' of her mother's life since the online harassment intensified.
'
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harassment → testify → life
She cannot ignore the horrible things said about her,' Ms Auzière told the court.
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Auzière → ignore → court
Ms Auzière said the impact had extended to the entire family, including Macron's grandchildren.
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impact → say → grandchildren
The Aporia
