The judge’s order is intended to close out a defamation suit that had alleged that Mr. Trump defamed Ms. Daniels on Twitter last spring. Mr. Trump called the sketch “a total con job,” depicting “a nonexistent man.”In an October decision, the court sided with Mr. Trump’s lawyers’ argument that the tweet included an opinion, which the president was free to express, and ordered Ms. Daniels to pay his legal fees. As recently as last month, the case was a source of tension between Ms. Daniels and Mr. Avenatti, who rose to fame by positioning themselves as critics of Mr. Trump. In a statement provided to The Daily Beast, which was published Nov. 28, Ms. Daniels accused Mr. Avenatti of having filed the defamation suit against Mr. Trump against her wishes. Four days later, Ms. Daniels tweeted that she and Mr. Avenatti had sorted things out.

Source: New York Times December 12, 2018 00:45 UTC