What were the major defamation lawsuits brought by Dominion and Smartmatic and what were their outcomes?

1. Dominion’s marquee case against Fox News and its resolution

Dominion sued Fox News and other defendants over repeated broadcast allegations that Dominion’s machines flipped votes in 2020; rather than go to trial, Fox Corp. agreed to settle Dominion’s Delaware lawsuit for $787.5 million in April 2023, a figure the press noted as the largest known U.S. media defamation settlement to that point and roughly half what Dominion initially sought in some filings ^{[1] [6]}. The settlement averted a planned trial and followed aggressive discovery that included depositions and internal communications, and it signaled how costly defamation litigation over amplified election disinformation could become for large media companies ^{[6] [7]}.

2. Dominion’s other suits and remaining litigation posture

Beyond Fox, Dominion filed suits against several individuals and outlets; federal courts have allowed at least some claims to proceed against defendants such as Rudy Giuliani and others, with judges rejecting attempts to dismiss certain claims on procedural grounds and permitting discovery to go forward in multiple matters ^{[2] [7]}. Legal observers cited in contemporaneous reporting warned that while Dominion had a strong factual record, the company still needed to meet legal standards such as proving actual malice where applicable, which defendants frequently invoked as a First Amendment defense ^{[8] [6]}.

3. Smartmatic’s broad litigation strategy and partial results

Smartmatic filed a $2.7 billion defamation suit against Fox News in February 2021 and pursued similar claims against Newsmax, One America News, Sidney Powell, Rudy Giuliani, Mike Lindell and others; courts have taken a mixed approach—New York and federal judges allowed major strands of the Fox suit to proceed while tossing or narrowing certain claims at different stages, appellate rulings have both reinstated and limited aspects of the complaints, and some defendants (notably Newsmax) reached settlement before jury selection ^{[2] [9] [4] [3]}. Smartmatic’s case against Newsmax was resolved by a confidential settlement reached on the first day of trial in September 2024, and Smartmatic continued to press the larger $2.7 billion claim against Fox as of the available reporting ^{[3] [2]}.

4. Outcomes against individual defendants and procedural developments

Several individual defendants faced separate trajectories: courts denied motions to dismiss Smartmatic’s suit against Mike Lindell in federal court and imposed sanctions in related proceedings, a New York judge initially excluded Jeanine Pirro from some claims before an appeals court restored certain allegations, and Dominion’s suits likewise survived early procedural challenges against some figures such as Giuliani ^{[4] [2] [10]}. Defendants consistently raised First Amendment and “actual malice” defenses—arguing in some filings they were reporting allegations from a sitting president or that plaintiffs could not meet heightened standards—which judges weighed when deciding which claims would proceed to discovery and trial ^{[6] [11]}.

5. What the settlements and pending suits mean—and reporting limits

The Dominion–Fox settlement illustrated the financial and reputational risks of amplifying demonstrably false election claims, while Smartmatic’s ongoing suits and its Newsmax settlement show civil litigation can produce both confidential resolutions and continued courtroom fights over liability and damages; however, publicly available coverage shows these matters remain partly unresolved—Smartmatic’s $2.7 billion claim against Fox was active in the courts as of the latest reporting and outcomes could still change through trial, settlement or appeal ^{[1] [3] [2]}. This summary reflects the cited reporting; it does not assert facts beyond those sources or predict final judgments in pending cases ^{[2] [3]}.