Donald Trump’s legal team and representatives for Paramount Global, the parent company of CBS News, asked to pause the president’s case against the news and entertainment giant because the two “are engaged in good faith, advanced, settlement negotiations,” according to a filing Monday.
The consent motion for a temporary stay of proceedings reads that the parties involved requested the stay until July 3.
While a settlement in the proceedings had been discussed as early as January, this is the most explicit evidence yet that the parties are approaching agreement on one.
“Plaintiffs’ counsel has conferred with counsel for Defendants, and all Parties have consented to this motion in writing,” the motion reads.
The case stems from a “60 Minutes” interview last October with the then-vice president and 2024 Democratic presidential nominee, Kamala Harris.
CBS used one part of Harris’ answer on Israel’s war in Gaza to promote the interview on its Sunday political show “Face the Nation” — but when the full sit-down aired the following day, it included a different portion of Harris’ answer.
Trump has alleged CBS misleadingly edited the interview, providing the Democratic Party with an advantage and alleging “partisan and unlawful acts of election and voter interference.”
“To paper over Kamala’s ‘word salad’ weakness, CBS used its national platform on 60 Minutes to cross the line from the exercise of judgment in reporting to deceitful, deceptive manipulation of news,” Trump’s suit alleges.
Paramount has filed to have the case dismissed, calling the suit “meritless” and one that “takes ‘aim at a news organization’ … for editorial decisions Plaintiffs dislike.”
Under normal circumstances, CNN reported, Paramount wouldn’t have issue getting the case thrown out (a number of experts have considered the case baseless). But the company is attempting to complete a multi-billion dollar merger with Skydance Media that requires approval from the administration.
A source familiar with the situation also told CNN that Paramount is “motivated to resolve the legal dispute this week in part because the company’s annual shareholder meeting is coming up on Wednesday.”
The Wall Street Journal reported last week that a mediator proposed a $20 million settlement, including “a $17 million donation to Trump’s presidential foundation or museum” and “millions more in legal fees and public service announcements on Paramount-owned networks to fight antisemitism.”
If the suit is settled, it will mark Trump’s second such settlement. Last December, Disney settled with Trump for $16 million in response to a suit against ABC News.
Some groups, including the Freedom of the Press Foundation, have suggested they will sue if Paramount settles. FPF wrote in a letter to Paramount that “it plans to file a shareholder’s derivative lawsuit should Paramount settle with Trump.” (A derivative lawsuit allows shareholders to sue corporate leaders for breach of fiduciary duty.)
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Nuha Dolby is a NOTUS reporter and an Allbritton Journalism Institute fellow.