On Friday, pro-Trump lawyer Sidney Powell was sued for defamation by Dominion Voting Systems, which is based in Denver. The 124-page lawsuit demands more than $1.3 billion in damages.
It reads that the action stems from statements Powell made to promote a false narrative about the 2020 election that caused "unprecedented harm" to the company. Powell is a former campaign lawyer for President Donald Trump.
"During a Washington, D.C. press conference, a Georgia political rally, and a media blitz, Powell falsely claimed that Dominion had rigged the election, that Dominion was created in Venezuela to rig elections for Hugo Chávez, and that Dominion bribed Georgia officials for a no-bid contract," the lawsuit reads.
These "wild accusations," as the lawsuit calls them, "are demonstrably false," it reads.
Dominion was founded in Toronto to create "a fully auditable paper-based vote system that would empower people with disabilities to vote independently on verifiable paper ballots," according to the lawsuit.
In addition, the only evidence Powell provided while accusing Dominion of paying kickbacks to Georgia Republicans was a doctored certificate from the Georgia Secretary of State, noting that it's undated. The actual certificate is dated and is publicly available on the Georgia Secretary of State’s website.
When Powell said, during multiple radio and television interviews, that her claims were backed by experts, she brought on a "motley crew of conspiracy theorists, con artists, armchair 'experts,' and anonymous sources who were judicially determined to be 'wholly unreliable,'" the lawsuit reads.
Dominion said as a result of these actions, the company, as well as the Georgia governor and Georgia's secretary of state, have been harassed and have received death threats.
"Dominion brings this action to set the record straight, to vindicate the company’s rights under civil law, to recover compensatory and punitive damages, to seek a narrowly tailored injunction, and to stand up for itself and its employees," the lawsuit says.
READ MORE: Dominion Voting Systems employee sues Trump campaign, allies
The lawsuit asks the court to award Dominion:
- Compensatory damages of not less than $651,735,000
- Punitive damages of not less than $651,735,000
- All expenses and costs, including attorney;s fees
- "A narrowly tailored permanent injunction requiring the removal of all the Defendants’ statements that are determined to be false and defamatory and enjoining the Defendants from repeating such statements or engaging in any further deceptive trade practices relating to Dominion," the lawsuit is quoted as reading
Dominion said its systems are certified under the U.S. Election Assistance Commission and with its many safeguards, there are "mountains of direct evidence" that disprove Powell's claims again Dominion, the lawsuit reads.
In early December, Attorney General William Barr declared the U.S. Justice Department had uncovered no evidence of widespread voter fraud that could change the outcome of the 2020 election.
In 2020, Dominion had contracts with 28 states and Puerto Rico. During the 2016 Presidential Election, Dominion’s technology was used in 1,635 jurisdictions in more than two dozen “red” and “blue” states.
As of 9:15 a.m. Friday, Powell had not publicly responded to the lawsuit.
Click here to read the lawsuit.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
