Donald Trump sued the ex-British spy who compiled the notorious dossier about alleged ties between the Kremlin and the former US president’s successful run to the White House.
Trump is bringing a data collection claim against ex-MI6 agent Christopher Steele and his Orbis business intelligence firm, according to a court filing. The suit was first filed in November last year and the first court hearing is set for next month. No other details of the claim are available.
The Steele Dossier made headlines around the world when it was leaked to BuzzFeed in January 2017 with allegations that the presidential campaign had been compromised by the Russian security service.
Steele, who Trump once called a “lowlife,” was retained by a Washington-based research firm, Fusion GPS, in June 2016 to examine Trump’s links to Russia. The Democratic National Committee and the campaign of Hillary Clinton hired Fusion after Trump was headed for the nomination.
Lawyers for Trump and Orbis didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Russian billionaires Mikhail Fridman and Petr Aven previously successfully sued Christopher Steele in a data-protection suit but a libel claim brought by another wealthy Russian individual failed.
