A Former Apprentice Contestant Just Filed a Defamation Lawsuit Against Donald Trump

Summer Zervos accused the president-elect of unwanted sexual assault.

Fight disinformation: Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily newsletter and follow the news that matters.


Former Apprentice contestant Summer Zervos, who was among a string of women to accuse Donald Trump of sexual misconduct in the lead up to the election, announced on Tuesday that she is suing the president-elect for defamation, claiming Trump “maliciously” disparaged her and falsely claimed she was a liar.

“On November 11, 2016, I called on Mr. Trump to retract his statements about me calling me a liar,” Zervos, who is being represented by attorney Gloria Allred, announced in a press conference in Los Angeles. “I also called upon him to state that what I said about his behavior towards me was true. More than two months have gone by and he has not issued that retraction.”

She said that she would be willing to dismiss her case without monetary compensation if Trump admitted she had been telling the truth.

In October, Zervos claimed that Trump had groped her during a 2007 meeting where the two met to discuss hiring prospects within the Trump organization. The allegations came amid the publication of a bombshell 2005 Access Hollywood recording showing Trump bragging about groping women without their consent.

“Mr. Trump, when I met you I was so impressed with your talents,” she said in October. “I wanted to be like you. I wanted a job in your organization. Instead, you treated me as an object to be hit upon. I was incredibly embarrassed by your sexual advances.”

Trump vehemently denied the account, as well as the other sexual assault allegations that quickly emerged after the Access Hollywood recording. More than a dozen women came forward with sexual assault claims; Trump denied each one. He also dismissed his statements in the Access Hollywood recording as mere “locker room” banter.

“She knows that she will be attacked by Mr. Trump and his supporters and defenders, but she is willing to endure and suffer unwarranted attacks against her in order to vindicate her rights,” Allred said during Tuesday’s press conference.

Republican operative Cheri Jacobus filed a similar defamation lawsuit against the incoming president alleging he made statements against her that damaged her career. A judge recently dismissed the case.

WE CAME UP SHORT.

We just wrapped up a shorter-than-normal, urgent-as-ever fundraising drive and we came up about $45,000 short of our $300,000 goal.

That means we're going to have upwards of $350,000, maybe more, to raise in online donations between now and June 30, when our fiscal year ends and we have to get to break-even. And even though there's zero cushion to miss the mark, we won't be all that in your face about our fundraising again until June.

So we urgently need this specific ask, what you're reading right now, to start bringing in more donations than it ever has. The reality, for these next few months and next few years, is that we have to start finding ways to grow our online supporter base in a big way—and we're optimistic we can keep making real headway by being real with you about this.

Because the bottom line: Corporations and powerful people with deep pockets will never sustain the type of journalism Mother Jones exists to do. The only investors who won’t let independent, investigative journalism down are the people who actually care about its future—you.

And we hope you might consider pitching in before moving on to whatever it is you're about to do next. We really need to see if we'll be able to raise more with this real estate on a daily basis than we have been, so we're hoping to see a promising start.

payment methods

WE CAME UP SHORT.

We just wrapped up a shorter-than-normal, urgent-as-ever fundraising drive and we came up about $45,000 short of our $300,000 goal.

That means we're going to have upwards of $350,000, maybe more, to raise in online donations between now and June 30, when our fiscal year ends and we have to get to break-even. And even though there's zero cushion to miss the mark, we won't be all that in your face about our fundraising again until June.

So we urgently need this specific ask, what you're reading right now, to start bringing in more donations than it ever has. The reality, for these next few months and next few years, is that we have to start finding ways to grow our online supporter base in a big way—and we're optimistic we can keep making real headway by being real with you about this.

Because the bottom line: Corporations and powerful people with deep pockets will never sustain the type of journalism Mother Jones exists to do. The only investors who won’t let independent, investigative journalism down are the people who actually care about its future—you.

And we hope you might consider pitching in before moving on to whatever it is you're about to do next. We really need to see if we'll be able to raise more with this real estate on a daily basis than we have been, so we're hoping to see a promising start.

payment methods

We Recommend

Latest

Sign up for our free newsletter

Subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

Get our award-winning magazine

Save big on a full year of investigations, ideas, and insights.

Subscribe

Support our journalism

Help Mother Jones' reporters dig deep with a tax-deductible donation.

Donate