New York State Appeals Court Rejects Fox News’ Bid to Dismiss Defamation Lawsuit
A New York state appeals court has rejected Fox News’ request to dismiss a multibillion-dollar defamation lawsuit. The lawsuit accuses the network of falsely accusing an electronic voting systems company of helping rig the 2020 US presidential election to favor Joe Biden over Donald Trump.
The decision, made by the Appellate Division in Manhattan, was unanimous, with all five judges in agreement. They stated that Smartmatic USA, the company in question, had alleged in “detailed fashion” how Fox News and some anchors and guests had “effectively endorsed and participated in (defamation) with reckless disregard for, or serious doubts about” whether the company engaged in Election fraud.
Smartmatic had sought $2.7 billion in damages, accusing Fox News of knowingly lying about its technology and how it was used to boost ratings and prevent Trump supporters from defecting to rival networks Newsmax and One America News.
The decision allows Smartmatic to continue its cases against Fox News, host Maria Bartiromo, and former host Lou Dobbs. It also reinstated some previously dismissed claims against Rudolph Giuliani, the former New York City mayor who worked as a Trump lawyer, and Smartmatic’s case against host Jeanine Pirro.
Fox News, whose lawyers also represented the hosts, said it expected to prevail in the lawsuit. “There is nothing more newsworthy than covering the president of the United States and his lawyers making allegations of voter fraud,” it said. “Freedom of the press is foundational to our democracy and must be protected, in addition to the damages claims being outrageous, unsupported, and not rooted in sound financial analysis.”
Smartmatic has said it provided election technology only to Los Angeles County, which Biden won. “We look forward to holding Fox News and the other defendants accountable in court,” said Smartmatic’s lawyer, J. Erik Connolly.
Tuesday’s decision upheld much of a March 2022 ruling by state Supreme Court Justice David Cohen. Another voting technology company, Dominion Voting Systems, is pursuing a similar $1.6 billion lawsuit against Fox News in Delaware.
The case is Smartmatic USA Corp et al v Fox Corp et al, New York State Supreme Court, Appellate Division, 1st Department, No. 2022-01291.
Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Daniel Wallis
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Original Story at www.reuters.com – 2023-02-14 08:00:00
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