Macrons Sue Candace Owens in Tennessee With 88 Claims

French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte have filed a new defamation lawsuit against American podcaster Candace Owens in federal court in Tennessee, the state where Owens lives. The complaint was filed on Nov. 4, 2026, in the US District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, and reporting on the docket puts it at more than 400 pages with 88 counts covering defamation, false light and defamation by implication. The case is Macron v. Owens, No. 3:26-cv-01765, assigned to District Judge Waverly D. Crenshaw Jr.

The Macrons allege that Owens republished false claims about them, including the claim that Brigitte Macron was born male, that the couple are blood relatives, and that they concealed a deception through criminal conduct. The complaint ties the claims to Owens's eight-part podcast series Becoming Brigitte, to her posts on X, and to commercial activity around the series. In this new filing, the Macrons also sued over Owens's use of a Brigitte doll, which they called grotesque and said was used as a prop to ridicule her appearance, according to excerpts released by Owens and reported by Reuters.

These are allegations in a civil complaint. No court has found Owens liable in the Tennessee case, and the claims have not been decided.

Why Tennessee, and why now

The Tennessee filing follows a ruling in the couple's first lawsuit. The Macrons first sued Owens and two businesses associated with her, Candace Owens LLC and GeorgeTom, Inc., in Delaware in July 2025, over what they called a lie-filled campaign of global humiliation. On Oct. 27, 2026, Delaware Superior Court Judge Sheldon K. Rennie ruled that Delaware did not have personal jurisdiction over Owens as an individual, because she lives in Tennessee. The Delaware case continues against her companies.

Owens acknowledged the new lawsuit in a post on X on Monday, Nov. 9. She wrote: "The Macrons have indeed filed a NEW set of claims against me. 88 in total." An official from Macron's office confirmed to Reuters that the couple had filed the lawsuit, and referred questions to their personal lawyer in the US, who did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Reporting on the complaint says the Macrons seek monetary damages and have demanded a jury trial. A summons was issued to Owens on Nov. 5. The docket records the summons being issued. It does not record a ruling on the merits, and the Tennessee case remains pending.