TRUTH IS A DEFENSE AGAINST LIBEL:

The lawsuit stems from a March 2019 op-ed that claimed Trump had a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin to help him win in the 2016 election in exchange for relief to Russia once he was in office

'The complaint alleges The Times was aware of the falsity at the time it published them, but did so for the intentional purpose of hurting the campaign, while misleading its own readers in the process,' she continued.

The case stems from a March 2019 op-ed article by columnist Max Frankel, who also served as the Times' executive editor from 1986-1994.

He argues in the piece that there was an understood agreement between the Kremlin and Trump campaign to assist him in getting elected in exchange for relief toward Russia once he was in office.

'There was no need for detailed electoral collusion between the Trump campaign and Vladimir Putin's oligarchy because they had an overarching deal: the quid of help in the campaign against Hillary Clinton for the quo of a new pro-Russian foreign policy, starting with relief from the Obama administration's burdensome economic sanctions,' Frankel wrote at the time.

'The Trumpites knew about the quid and held out the prospect of the quo,' he continued.

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