Fox News' Legal Battles Aren't Over Yet

• Fox News is facing another legal battle over false claims made by its reporters during the 2020 presidential election.
• Dominion Voting Systems reached a settlement with the company Tuesday.
• Smartmatic, a rival to Dominion Voting Systems, is also suing Fox News, seeking $2.7 billion in damages.

More evidence of Fox News' alleged misconduct while reporting the 2020 presidential election could be unveiled by another lawsuit against the media conglomerate, according to a statement from Smartmatic lawyer Erik Connolly.

Fox News faces multiple legal battles over claims some of its reporters made regarding conspiracies related to the 2020 presidential election. On Tuesday, Dominion Voting Systems reached a $787 billion settlement with Fox shortly before attorneys were expected to deliver opening statements. The trial was scheduled to start Monday and then was delayed, sparking rumors of the possible settlement. But despite the agreement between the two parties, Fox News continues to face legal troubles over its 2020 election reporting.

Smartmatic, an election technology company rivaling Dominion, is also suing Fox News. The lawsuit, which was filed in February 2021, is seeking $2.7 billion in damages from the media corporation as well as some of its anchors, more than $1 billion higher than the Dominion lawsuit, which sought $1.6 billion in damages before reaching the settlement.

"Dominion's litigation exposed some of the misconduct and damage caused by Fox's disinformation campaign. Smartmatic will expose the rest," Connolly said in a statement that was tweeted by Semafor editor-in-chief Ben Smith on Tuesday afternoon. "Smartmatic remains committed to clearing its name, recouping the significant damage done to the company, and holding Fox accountable for undermining democracy."

Newsweek reached out to Smartmatic by email for comment.

Fox's previous attempt to dismiss the Smartmatic lawsuit were denied, but the trial doesn't have a date set yet. The trial likely won't take place until fall of 2024, according to an article by Forbes, putting it at or near the same time as the 2024 election, of which former president Donald Trump is a contender. Trump continues to fuel claims that the 2020 election was stolen.

Like Dominion, Smartmatic is suing Fox News because of false claims made by Fox News reporters about the 2020 election. In the Dominion lawsuit, Fox admitted that the court found certain claims made by its anchors about Dominion were false.

"This settlement reflects FOX's continued commitment to the highest journalistic standards. We are hopeful that our decision to resolve this dispute with Dominion amicably, instead of the acrimony of a divisive trial, allows the country to move forward from these issues," the network told Newsweek in a statement.

According to a statement from Dominion CEO John Poulos, Fox's false reporting on Dominion's involvement in the 2020 election caused damage to the voting systems company.

"Fox has admitted to telling lies about Dominion that caused enormous damage to my Company, our employees, and our customers. Nothing can ever make up for that," Poulos told Newsweek in a statement. "Truthful reporting in the media is essential to our democracy. Dominion, our employees and our partners are grateful to the court for allowing the process for the truth to come out."