Dominion Voting Methods had two targets in its defamation case in opposition to Fox Information — accountability and “making an attempt to make Dominion complete,” stated Justin Nelson, the lead counsel election expertise firm.
Each had been completed on this settlement, he informed CNN on Tuesday.
The cost of greater than $787 million by Fox Information to Dominion and the community’s assertion acknowledging that its protection of the 2020 election was false was “a powerful message of accountability” and an necessary victory for the staff of his consumer’s firm.
“That is actually the primary time that anybody has paid a worth for telling the lies of the 2020 election and we’re very proud about that,” he stated.
Whereas the settlement doesn’t stipulate that Fox’s anchors should acknowledge the lies on air, Nelson stated it was a consequential end result for the community.
The texts and emails that emerged throughout the litigation course of from contained in the Fox community had been precious, he stated. “And what right now has proven is that you need to pay a worth if you happen to’re telling lies.”
Earlier court docket filings revealed messages that confirmed that essentially the most distinguished stars and highest-ranking executives at Fox Information privately ridiculed claims of election fraud within the 2020 election, regardless of the right-wing channel permitting lies in regards to the presidential contest to be promoted on its air.
“It’s plenty of what we train our children, which is that the reality does certainly matter, and if you’re mendacity, ultimately there’s going to be penalties to that,” Nelson stated.
He stated the settlement with Fox sends a “sturdy message” to different right-wing shops through which Dominion has ongoing authorized disputes.