Facing a $1.3 billion lawsuit from Dominion Voting Systems after spreading misinformation about voter fraud, ex-Trump lawyer Sidney Powell is now arguing that “no reasonable person would conclude” that her claims “were truly statements of fact.”
The January lawsuit follows Powell’s repeated baseless claims that Dominion helped commit voter fraud during the 2020 election. As reported by Axios, Powell had apparently moved to dismiss the defamation suit, arguing that Dominion conducted a “well-orchestrated public relations campaign to save their business” and that allegations against her are “sparse.”
“Plaintiffs themselves characterize the statements at issue as ‘wild accusations’ and ‘outlandish claims,’” her lawyers wrote in the filing. “They are repeatedly labeled ‘inherently improbable’ and even ‘impossible.’ Such characterizations of the allegedly defamatory statements further support defendant’s position that reasonable people would not accept such statements as fact but view them only as claims that await testing by the courts through the adversary process.”
Back in December, over 4,000 lawyers signed an open letter calling on “disciplinary authorities” to investigate Powell’s wild claims and behavior in relation to the 2020 election.
“More than 35 losses in election-related cases have made one thing painfully clear: President Trump’s barrage of litigation is a pretext for a campaign to undermine public confidence in the outcome of the 2020 election, which inevitably will subvert constitutional democracy,” the letter read. “Sadly, the President’s primary agents and enablers in this effort are lawyers, obligated by their oath and ethical rules to uphold the rule of law.”
In other Trump news, the former president’s Mar-a-Lago club, where 74-year-old Trump has been staying for the last few months as he potentially plots a 2024 presidential run, was forced to partially shut down following a staff COVID outbreak this past week.
