Smartmatic Won’t Be Able To Collect Punitive Damages In Upcoming Newsmax Defamation Trial
deadline.comSmartmatic will not be able to collect punitive damages in its upcoming defamation trial against Newsmax should a jury rule in its favor, a Delaware judge ruled today.
The ruling could greatly impact the amount that Smartmatic, an election systems company, will be able to recover in a ruling in its favor.
A trial is scheduled to start next week. Judge Eric M. Davis wrote that the court “will not allow the jury to consider the issue of punitive damages in the trial.” Davis wrote that Florida law, which is the governing standard in the case, requires that plaintiffs show that defendants engaged in “express malice,” or a specific intent to harm, in order to collect punitive damages.
Earlier this month, Davis rejected Smartmatic’s contention that Newsmax was guilty of “express malice.” Davis found that there “is no evidence that Newsmax acted with evil intent towards Smartmatic or that Newsmax’s proceeded with the intention to hurt Smartmatic.
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