Dominion lawyers warn of ‘imminent’ legal action against Rudy Giuliani

Attorneys instruct Trump’s attorney and White House counsel Pat Cipollone to retract ‘defamatory claims’ and preserve documents

Attorneys for Dominion Voting Systems have demanded Rudy Giuliani and White House counsel Pat Cipollone preserve their records related to the company at the centre of their conspiracies and baseless claims of election fraud following the results of the 2020 presidential election .

The attorneys for the company – who have also issued warnings to Sidney Powell to retract her “wild, knowingly baseless and false accusations” about the company’s voting machines – urged Donald Trump’s personal attorney to halt "defamatory claims" in its instructions to “preserve and retain all documents relating to Dominion” and his “smear campaign” against the company.

Attorneys told Mr Cipollone that their request for document preservation also includes conversations White House officials had with attorneys like Mr Giuliani or Ms Powell about the company.

Defamation lawyers Tom Clare and Megan Meier from Clare Locke LLP warned Mr Giuliani that “litigation regarding these issues is imminent."

A letter reviewed by The Independent says: “Because you have been, and continue to be, an architect and driver of the ongoing misinformation campaign against Dominion, we write to you now to (1) demand that you cease and desist making defamatory claims against Dominion and (2) ensure that there is no confusion about your obligation to preserve and retain all documents relating to Dominion and your smear campaign against the company.”

The latest warnings follow the firm’s letter to Ms Powell slamming the “coordinated media circus and fundraising scheme” helmed by Ms Powell and others that has put the company’s “employees’ lives at risk and caused enormous harm to the company.”

“Your outlandish accusations are demonstrably false,” the letter says, pointing out that Ms Powell’s allegations about the company have not been made in court, “effectively denying Dominion the opportunity to disprove” her litigation’s “false accusations.”

“While you are entitled to your own opinions, Ms Powell, you are not entitled to your own facts,” the letter says.

Following the president’s loss in the 2020 election to Joe Biden, the president and his allies have mounted spurious legal challenges to the results, which have been largely dismissed in court, while amplifying false claims and conspiracies in press conferences and on right-wing media alleging that the results were manipulated.

Dominion’s letter to Ms Powell also asks her to preserve documents, emails, messages, recordings and other notes related to her claims, signalling potential litigation over defamation claims.

On Tuesday, an employee for Dominion filed a lawsuit against the Trump campaign, his attorneys and right-wing media networks alleging intentional infliction of emotional distress and civil conspiracy.

In court papers filed in Colorado, Eric Coomer said he had been subject to death threats, harassment, and “untold damage to his reputation as a national expert on voting systems.”

On 19 December, right-wing cable news network Newsmax issued a statement in an apparent attempt to distance itself from baseless claims of election fraud related to Dominion as well as voting software company Smartmatic after weeks of coverage dedicated to airing conspiracies.

The network has sought to “clarify its news coverage and note that it has not reported as true" several claims supported by its guests and contributors, it said in a statement.

Newsmax released a statement following legal notices from Smartmatic to the network as well as One America News and Fox  News demanding the networks retract coverage falsely linking the company to states where the president’s legal team has contested election results.

A statement from Smartmatic CEO Antonio Mugica said the network has “no evidence to support their attacks on Smartmatic because there is no evidence.”

"This campaign was designed to defame Smartmatic and undermine legitimately conducted elections,” he said. "Our efforts are more than just about Smartmatic or any other company. This campaign is an attack on election systems and election workers in an effort to depress confidence in future elections and potentially counter the will of the voters, not just here, but in democracies around the world."