A defamation lawsuit involving electronic voting machine manufacturer Smartmatic and conservative news outlet Newsmax saw Superior Court Judge Eric Davis establish guidelines for the upcoming trial on Monday. The trial, set to start on Sept. 26 with jury selection, could last up to four weeks after narrowing down potential witnesses.
Smartmatic accuses Newsmax of making false and defamatory statements in late 2020, suggesting Smartmatic was involved in rigging election results. Newsmax argues they were reporting on allegations made by Trump and his allies, such as Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell.
During a pretrial conference, Judge Davis considered motions from both sides regarding the presentation of evidence. He limited Newsmax’s mention of a federal criminal investigation against Smartmatic executives but denied Smartmatic’s motion to prevent Newsmax from discussing witnesses invoking the Fifth Amendment.
Judge Davis ruled that Newsmax cannot defend itself by citing other media outlets’ statements on the 2020 election or use non-expert witness testimony about the First Amendment’s scope. He also stated that Smartmatic should get expert testimony to prove Newsmax violated journalism standards.
The lawsuit in Delaware is one of several stemming from conservative news reports after the election. Smartmatic also has a defamation suit against Fox News and settled a case with One America News Network. Dominion Voting Systems filed defamation lawsuits against those who accused its equipment of impacting Trump’s loss, with Fox News settling for $787 million in a previous case overseen by Judge Davis.
Davis agreed to exclude any mention of the Dominion-Fox settlement in the Smartmatic-Newsmax trial, as neither party contested the motion.
