French President Emmanuel Macron and his spouse Brigitte plan to submit “photographic and scientific proof” to refute defamatory claims made by far-right American influencer and political commentator Candace Owens. The couple initiated a defamation lawsuit in July following Owens’ repeated promotion of transphobic allegations concentrating on the French First Woman. Owens has accused Brigitte Macron of being transgender, claiming she was assigned male at beginning beneath the title Jean-Michel Trogneux, and alleging that she “groomed” a teenage Emmanuel Macron earlier than transitioning to feminine. These unfounded claims have been a supply of misery for the Macrons.
The couple’s lawyer, Tom Clare, co-founder of Clare Locke, advised the BBC’s Fame Beneath Fireplace podcast that Brigitte Macron discovered the accusations “extremely upsetting” and that the distractions had been sporting on the president.
“Identical to anyone who’s juggling a profession and a household life, when your loved ones is beneath assault, it wears on you,” Clare stated. “He’s not immune from that as a result of he’s the president of a rustic.”
Clare added that the proof to be offered will embrace professional testimony of a scientific nature, although he didn’t disclose the precise particulars. The Macrons are ready to display unequivocally that the allegations are false.
“These people are vital on the world stage, however they’re additionally human beings,” Clare emphasised. “It’s offensive and hurtful to be accused of successfully felony acts and conspiring to deceive the world about their identities.”
Brigitte Macron, 72, who has three kids, met Emmanuel Macron, 24 years her junior, whereas instructing at a highschool in Amiens, northern France, the place he was her pupil.
When requested if the couple would current pictures of Brigitte throughout being pregnant and elevating her kids, Clare confirmed such pictures exist and can be submitted in courtroom, the place strict guidelines and requirements apply.
Owens, with over six million Instagram followers, has insisted she was born male and promised in March 2024 to stake her “total skilled status” on the declare. The allegation first appeared in fringe on-line circles in a 2021 YouTube video by French bloggers Amandine Roy and Natacha Rey.
Macron beforehand gained a defamation case in France in opposition to Roy and Rey in 2024, however the ruling was overturned on enchantment in 2025 on the grounds of freedom of expression moderately than the veracity of the claims.
Clare revealed that in his investigation into Owens, they analysed her networks and located vital hyperlinks to the French far-right. He famous Owens instructions a big viewers, along with her podcast listeners and mainstream media steadily citing her in relation to this false story.
Clare described the defamation swimsuit filed in Delaware as a “final resort” after a yr of unsuccessful makes an attempt to steer Owens to stop spreading lies and inform the reality.