Donald Trump’s $10 billion (£7.5 billion) defamation claim against the BBC can proceed after a Florida court rejected the broadcaster’s attempt to have it dismissed. The ruling allows the dispute over a Panorama documentary’s editing to advance, but does not establish that the president’s allegations are proven.

District Judge Jeffrey Kuntz found that Trump had “plausibly alleged” reputational harm arising from the editing of the 2024 programme. A separate claim accusing the BBC of unfair trade practices was dismissed.

The documentary was criticised for giving the impression that Trump had encouraged supporters to storm the US Capitol on 6 January 2021, after losing the 2020 presidential election to Joe Biden.

Court documents filed on Tuesday said Trump had plausibly alleged a framework of “actual malice”, citing the context in which his speech was edited and circumstantial evidence concerning the edit. That finding concerns whether his allegations can proceed, rather than whether he has proved them.

The BBC had warned that allowing the case to continue would have a “chilling effect” on “robust reporting on public figures and events”. Trump, by contrast, celebrated the decision on Truth Social as a major victory and accused the broadcaster of deceiving the American public.

The broadcaster said it was surprised by the ruling but respected the court’s authority. “We remain confident in our position and will continue to respond through the proper legal process,” a spokesperson said, adding that further comment would be inappropriate while proceedings continued.

The BBC has already acknowledged an editorial failure. Chairman Samir Shah apologised for an “error of judgment” and accepted that the programme’s editing gave “the impression of a direct call for violent action”. The allegations over the documentary also led the then director-general, Tim Davie, to announce his resignation.

Those acknowledgements and the question of legal liability remain distinct. Trump has secured the right to pursue his defamation claim, not a ruling awarding the damages he seeks. The BBC must file its response to the ruling by 1 December.