Judge Limits Candace Owens’s Liability in Macron Defamation Case

Judge Rennie also found that because the Macrons live in France, that country’s statute of limitations, rather than those in the United States, should apply.

France requires that lawsuits be brought within three months of the time supposedly defamatory statements were made, but in cases where they target someone for their race, religion, sex, sexual orientation or disability, that deadline can be extended to one year.

In Tuesday’s ruling, the court asked both sides to submit arguments on which time period would be appropriate and reserved a decision for a later date. If the judge ultimately rules in favor of the three-month rule, that could force dismissal of the entire suit because the Macrons did not initially file within a three-month window.

Ms. Owens celebrated the ruling in a post on X, saying she was “tremendously grateful” to the courts and the judge. A spokesman for Ms. Owens declined to offer further comment.

Clare Locke, the law firm representing the Macrons, applauded the court’s decision to preserve the claims against Ms. Owens’s companies and said it would consider other ways to hold Ms. Owens accountable personally, despite the ruling.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/27/business/media/candace-owens-macron-defamation-case.html