The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has affirmed the dismissal of Zia Chishti’s lawsuit against Tatiana Spottiswoode and her attorneys, leaving the 2019 arbitration award in Spottiswoode’s favour fully intact.

The three-judge federal appellate panel upheld the dismissal with prejudice, meaning Chishti’s amended complaint cannot be refiled in its existing form. The court rejected his claims for defamation, false light, breach of contract, tortious interference, abuse of process, intentional infliction of emotional distress, conspiracy and loss of consortium.

The decision is significant because it follows Chishti’s March 2025 settlement of separate libel proceedings against The Telegraph in the United Kingdom.

After that settlement, Chishti and his wife publicly stated that the outcome showed that accusations made against him were false and that his reputation had been vindicated.

The U.S. appellate court did not........

© Naya Daur