Former MI6 Officer's Firm Pursues Donald Trump in Scottish Court Over Unpaid £800,000 Legal Debt

A private intelligence consultancy established by a former British intelligence officer has initiated legal proceedings in a local Scottish court to recover upwards of £800,000 in outstanding legal expenses from Donald Trump.

The case was heard at Ayr Sheriff Court, where Orbis Business Intelligence—directed by former MI6 operative Christopher Steele—is seeking to enforce financial claims against the Trump Turnberry golf resort located in Ayrshire.

The ongoing recovery effort originates from a data protection lawsuit that Trump brought against Steele and his company in London's High Court of Justice. That legal challenge was dismissed in early 2024 after the court determined the action had been initiated out of time, leading the presiding judge to instruct Trump to pay £680,000 in legal expenses to Orbis.

Because the required sum has remained unpaid, accrued interest over the intervening period has increased the total debt significantly. Formal court filings associated with two separate recovery applications reveal that the outstanding figure has risen to £789,812.91, with legal representatives indicating the true sum is now north of £800,000.

The primary conflict in the Scottish court revolves around the legal and corporate structure of the Ayrshire property. SLC Turnberry Limited, the corporate entity that holds title to the championship course, is resisting the enforcement action by challenging whether Trump can be classified as the resort's ultimate owner.

David Massaro, legal counsel representing Turnberry, told the court that the former president’s financial stake in the property is held through an American trust structure in which Trump is named as the beneficiary. Massaro maintained that having shares held by trustees does not establish a sufficient legal connection to hold the company liable for the debt.

The defense also addressed the broader implications of this argument, with Massaro clarifying to the sheriff that Turnberry was not alleging that Trump's previous assertions of ownership were dishonest, but rather that the precise legal mechanics of the trust prevent direct attachment of the resort's assets.

In contrast, Duncan Hamilton KC, appearing on behalf of Orbis, argued that Trump had actively avoided settling the debt mandated by the English judiciary. Hamilton noted that over the eighteen months since the High Court issued its ruling, Trump had refused or failed to satisfy the financial judgment.

The advocate emphasized that Trump has repeatedly and publicly maintained that he is the rightful owner of Turnberry. Hamilton cited official US federal asset disclosure filings alongside formal witness statements submitted by Trump to the High Court in London, in which he unambiguously identified himself as the owner of the luxury Scottish resort.

Hamilton warned that the defense strategy adopted by SLC Turnberry creates substantial legal and reputational risks for Trump. By arguing in a Scottish courtroom that Trump is not the true owner, the resort’s legal team effectively suggests that the former president's prior sworn declarations and federal financial disclosures were inaccurate.

The court heard that Orbis has dedicated considerable time and substantial financial resources to pursue Trump across several jurisdictions in an attempt to recover the awarded legal expenses, ultimately leading the firm to target Turnberry due to its physical location within the Scottish court's jurisdiction.

The broader dispute between the parties dates back to 2016, when Steele, who previously served as the head of the Russia desk at MI6, was retained by a law firm connected to Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign to investigate Trump's alleged ties to the Russian government.

That investigation resulted in the creation of the widely publicized Steele dossier, a compendium of uncorroborated intelligence memos. The dossier made several claims, including allegations that Russian intelligence services had compromised Trump, that Russian officials had cultivated him over several years, and that he had engaged in illicit activities during trips to Moscow.

Trump consistently and vehemently denied all allegations contained in the dossier, which was published online by the media outlet BuzzFeed in 2017 without Steele's authorization. Trump subsequently initiated his English legal action against Orbis under data privacy legislation, which was formally dismissed by the High Court in February 2024, followed by the significant costs order handed down against him.

With Steele and Orbis having no prior operational ties to Ayrshire, the enforcement proceedings were moved to Ayr Sheriff Court purely because the Turnberry estate, acquired by the Trump family in June 2014, is situated within its geographic territory. Sheriff officers formally served legal notices at the resort premises last September.

Sheriff Millar concluded the procedural hearing by scheduling a full follow-up hearing for November. The court also ordered that Trump be formally notified of the updated and increased monetary total currently being claimed by the intelligence firm.