Rupert Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch And Others Can Be Compelled To Testify Live In Dominion’s Defamation Trial Against Fox News, Judge Says
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Rupert Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch, Fox Corporation board member Paul Ryan and Fox Corp. executive Viet Dinh can be compelled to testify in Dominion’s upcoming defamation trial against Fox News, a judge said on Wednesday.
Delaware Judge Eric M. Davis said that Dominion would have to issue a trial subpoena to force such live testimony, but he would not quash it over issues of inconvenience or because they previously have sat for depositions. Davis cited court precedent that officers, directors and managing agents of a Delaware corporation can be compelled to appear.
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“Both Fox and Dominion have made these four parties very relevant,” Davis said.
He added, “If Dominion wants to bring them live, they need to do a trial subpoena and I would not quash it and I would compel them to come.”
He also cited issues with Rupert Murdoch’s deposition and whether questions asked of him were clear or unfairly prejudicial.
“Many of those things can be addressed if he were testifying live,” the judge said.
Dominion attorneys argued that Fox News executives Jerry Andrews, Gary Schreier, Tom Lowell and Ron Mitchell should be compelled to testify, as well as Irena Briganti, senior executive president of corporate communications. They also wanted Fox Corp. executive Raj Shah to testify live.
But Davis said that of that group, only Lowell, executive vice president and managing editor of news, could be compelled, as he was offered to testify on Fox News’ behalf. “I think there is a distinction between someone who is a powerful person at Fox but doesn’t take on the role of an officer like president, chairman, CFO,” Davis said.
The judge also raised the possibility some witnesses testifying virtually via Zoom. “You could do a trial subpoena to have a person testify virtually from another jurisdiction,” he said. But he indicated that officers, directors and managing agents of Fox Corp. and Fox News could be required to show up in person.
The trial is scheduled to start on April 17, with jury selection next week. Last week, Davis ruled that jurors will decide whether Fox’s airing of unfounded claims that Dominion rigged the results of the 2020 election amounted to actual malice, the threshold for proving defamation claim. Jurors also will decide whether Fox Corp., and not just Fox News, should be liable, as well as any damages to award Dominion.
Fox News confirmed this week that its live witness list includes hosts Maria Bartiromo, Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, Jeanine Pirro, Bret Baier, Will Cain, Dana Perino and Eric Shawn. Also on the list is Fox News Media CEO Suzanne Scott, Fox News President Jay Wallace, Fox Business President Lauren Petterson, Fox News COO and CFO Joe Dorrego, executive vice president Meade Cooper, Tucker Carlson Tonight senior executive producer Justin Wells and senior producer Alex Hooper.
In a statement issued after the judge’s ruling, Fox said, “Dominion clearly wants to continue generating misleading stories from their friends in the media to distract from their weak case. Demanding witnesses who had nothing to do with the challenged broadcasts is just the latest example of their political crusade in search of a financial windfall.”
Davis also said that he did not want attorneys to raise January 6th as an issue in the case. “I know that shocks everyone,” the judge said, adding that he didn’t see it as relevant to the alleged defamatory statements and that it could be unfairly prejudicial toward Fox.
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