Fox Slammed with $2.7 Billion Defamation Lawsuit – Court Drops the Bombshell Ruling

A New York state appeals court on Thursday rejected Fox Corp.’s request to dismiss part of a $2.7 billion defamation lawsuit filed by Smartmatic, a voting technology company, over misinformation related to the 2020 presidential election.

The lawsuit, which accuses Fox of defaming Smartmatic by airing false claims of vote-rigging on Fox News, is set to proceed to trial in Manhattan’s state court, though an out-of-court settlement remains a possibility.

Smartmatic sued Fox in February 2021 after the media giant repeatedly aired unfounded allegations of election fraud that included references to Smartmatic. This follows Fox News’ 2023 settlement of a similar $787.5 million lawsuit with Dominion Voting Systems, another voting tech firm.

On Thursday, a five-judge panel from the New York State Supreme Court’s Appellate Division upheld an earlier ruling denying Fox’s attempt to dismiss the lawsuit. The judges found Smartmatic’s allegations that Fox Corp. actively participated in promoting a “disinformation campaign” in the aftermath of the election to be sufficient for the case to proceed.

Smartmatic’s attorney, Erik Connolly, commented, stating, “Fox Corp. tried, and failed, to have this case dismissed, and now it must answer for its actions in court.”