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The most significant legal development on Tuesday was in regard to Fox. As Bloomberg's Erik Larson and Mike Leonard reported, a judge ruled that Fox Corporation, Fox News' parent company, can be sued by Dominion "because Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch may have acted with 'actual malice' in directing the network to broadcast conspiracy theories alleging the 2020 presidential election was rigged."
In the decision, Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric M. Davis cited reports that Murdoch privately expressed he knew Trump lost the election. Davis also cited editorials in other Murdoch-run outlets, such as The Wall Street Journal and New York Post, that condemned Trump and encouraged him to accept defeat.
"These allegations support a reasonable inference that Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch either knew Dominion had not manipulated the election or at least recklessly disregarded the truth when they allegedly caused Fox News to propagate its claims about Dominion," Davis wrote. "Thus, Dominion has successfully brought home actual malice to the individuals at Fox Corporation who it claims to be responsible for the broadcasts."
The loss again raises the question as to whether Fox will try to settle the $1.6 billion lawsuit before it reaches the stage of discovery. And if it does attempt to settle, will Dominion allow it to do so? Or will the voting tech company, which has said it aims to clear its name through its lawsuits, want to see the case through?
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