Defamation Lawsuit Against Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones Dismissed by Judge

Alexandra Davis' defamation lawsuit against Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was dismissed by Texas Federal Judge Robert W. Schroeder III on Tuesday, according to Don Van Natta Jr. of ESPN.

Davis has said that she is Jones' biological daughter and that the Cowboys' owner and two of his associates "initiated a deliberate plan" to publicly paint her as an "extortionist" and "shakedown artist" and attacked her credibility "based knowingly on false statements and accusations"

Per that report, Davis first sued Jones in March 2022 (in separate litigation to the defamation case), seeking to be recognized as Jones' daughter and saying she had been paid $375,000 and had two trusts set up in her name in an effort to hide that Jones was her biological father.

Davis said her mother entered a confidentiality agreement with Jones when she was born, and in her first lawsuit sought to be released from that agreement. The court eventually ordered Jones to undertake a paternity test, though it has been delayed.

While the defamation lawsuit was dismissed on Tuesday, only part of it was dismissed with prejudice.

Judge Schroeder found that some of the comments made by Jones or his associates, as brought forward by Davis in her case, were either true or not defamatory. But he also said that Davis could amend her case and attempt to prove actual malice—essentially that Jones and his associates knew what they were saying about her and the situation was false but said it publicly anyway.

"We are amending our pleading and we are pleased that the case is moving forward," one of Davis' lawyers, Andrew Bergman, said after the ruling.