Georgia Election Workers Want Giuliani Sanctioned For Defaming Them—Again

Topline

Ex-Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani should be held in civil contempt and sanctioned for continuing to spread false claims about the 2020 election, Georgia election workers argued in a court filing Wednesday, as Giuliani turns over his possessions after being ordered to pay the election workers $148 million.

Key Facts

Election workers Ruby Freeman and Wandrea “Shaye” Moss filed a request in federal court Wednesday for Giuliani to be held in contempt and sanctioned, arguing the ex-lawyer is violating an injunction in which he agreed not to spread any false claims about the plaintiffs.

Giuliani was ordered to pay Freeman and Moss $148 million for defaming them by tying them to false fraud claims; he subsequently declared bankruptcy and has now been ordered to turn over his possessions to the election workers in order to pay off the judgment, including his car and New York City apartment.

Giuliani has repeatedly continued to make false claims about the election workers on his show that streams online, the plaintiffs allege, claiming as recently as last week Freeman and Moss were “quadruple” counting ballots—which there is no evidence to support—and saying, “I’m sorry they’re going to sue me again for saying it, but what am I going to do but tell the truth.”

That explicitly violates the terms Giuliani agreed to in May, the plaintiffs argue, which prohibit him from publishing or causing others to publish “any statements that suggest that Plaintiffs, whether mentioned directly, indirectly, or by implication, engaged in wrong-doing in connection with the 2020 presidential election.”

Freeman and Moss asked the court to hold Giuliani in contempt and hold a hearing to determine the specific amount he should pay in damages.

Giuliani’s spokesman Ted Goodman called the filing “a dishonest and duplicitous attack meant to deprive Mayor Rudy Giuliani of his First Amendment right to freedom of speech” in a statement to Forbes Wednesday, saying Giuliani “has every right to defend himself, especially as the other side consistently leaks to the press.”

What To Watch For

U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell ordered Giuliani to respond to the sanctions request by Dec. 2 and scheduled a hearing on the matter for Dec. 12. If Giuliani doesn’t respond to the plaintiff’s argument he should be sanctioned, Howell noted, which will be “treated as conceding that motion,” suggesting Giuliani would be held in contempt by default. The sanctions request was made as part of the defamation case the election workers brought against Giuliani and not as part of his separate bankruptcy case—in which Freeman and Moss are gaining control of Giuliani’s possessions—and it remains to be seen if any additional punishments could be sought against Giuliani as both cases play out.

Chief Critic

“The ongoing lawfare against Mayor Giuliani must end,” Goodman said in a statement Wednesday. “It's a complete abomination, and totally outrageous, to watch these people try and destroy this good and honest 80-year-old man who has dedicated his life to serving others.”

Surprising Fact

If there is a hearing to consider Giuliani being sanctioned, he will likely have a different legal team than the ones that have been representing him in court. Giuliani’s legal team representing him in the dispute over his possessions has asked the court for permission to drop him as a client, citing rules that allow lawyers to withdraw when “the client insists upon taking action with which the lawyer has a fundamental disagreement” or actions that are “not warranted under existing law,” or if the “client fails to cooperate in the representation or otherwise renders the representation unreasonably difficult for the lawyer to carry out employment effectively.” The specific reasons for the lawyers’ decision to withdraw were redacted in a court filing Tuesday. Giuliani has asked the court in the case over his possessions to replace that legal team with attorney Joseph Cammarata, though the issue is still being litigated, as Freeman and Moss have opposed Giuliani’s previous lawyers dropping out.

Key Background

Giuliani led then-President Donald Trump’s unsuccessful legal campaign to overturn the 2020 election and became one of the biggest figures claiming election fraud, which there is no credible evidence to support. His post-election actions have now led to widespread consequences against the former New York City mayor: In addition to the $148 defamation judgment, he has also had his law license revoked, been indicted in Georgia and Arizona, had his radio show canceled and faces multiple other defamation cases from voting machine companies Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic. Giuliani has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him and maintained his innocence, continuing to falsely claim there was fraud. A federal judge ordered Giuliani to turn over millions of dollars worth of assets to the Georgia election workers in October in order to satisfy the $148 million judgment, including the ownership of his New York City apartment, cash in his bank account, a Mercedes-Benz, some furniture, a television, sports memorabilia, “costume jewelry,” a diamond ring and 26 watches. Giuliani has now started turning over those items after previously dragging his feet on doing so, with the judge in that case separately threatening sanctions against Giuliani if he refused to comply.

Further Reading