The Fox News Smartmatic lawsuit update as of mid-2026 is that the $2.7 billion defamation case remains active in New York state court, no trial date has been set, and cross-motions for summary judgment are still awaiting a ruling from Justice David Cohen. A May 2026 appellate decision reopened discovery so Fox can probe how a federal criminal indictment against Smartmatic affects the company’s damages claims, pushing the case further from trial-ready status.1New York Courts. Smartmatic USA Corp. v Fox Corp.
Smartmatic, a voting technology company, sued Fox News, Fox Corporation, and several individuals in February 2021 over on-air claims that Smartmatic helped switch votes from Donald Trump to Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election. The company says its actual role that year was limited to Los Angeles County and that the conspiracy theories aired on Fox wrecked its reputation and business in the U.S. and abroad. Defendants include Fox Corporation, Fox News Network, hosts Maria Bartiromo and Jeanine Pirro, the estate of the late Lou Dobbs, and Trump legal advisers Rudolph Giuliani and Sidney Powell.2NPR. Fox News Smartmatic Lawsuit Election Claims Trial
Summary Judgment Motions Are Still Waiting on a Ruling
Both sides asked Justice Cohen to decide central issues without a jury trial. At a December 2, 2025 hearing, Smartmatic urged Cohen to rule as a matter of law that Fox acted with actual malice. Cohen called that a “hard sell.”3New York Law Journal. A Hard Sell: Voting Machine Co. Says Judge, Not Jury, Should Decide Key Issue in Fox News Defamation Case
Smartmatic attorney J. Erik Connolly argued at the same hearing that Fox “released toxic gas that killed Smartmatic,” and has pointed to evidence that 28 of Fox’s own fact witnesses admitted they had no evidence supporting the election-rigging allegations.2NPR. Fox News Smartmatic Lawsuit Election Claims Trial4The New York Times. Smartmatic Fox News Defamation Case Fox counters that its coverage involved legitimate reporting on newsworthy claims from the president and his legal team, and that Smartmatic’s business problems predated the 2020 broadcasts. Fox also disputes the $2.7 billion damages figure.
Cohen has not ruled. His decision will shape which issues, if any, are left for a jury.
A Federal Criminal Case Is Reshaping the Civil Litigation
In August 2024, a federal grand jury in the Southern District of Florida indicted three current and former Smartmatic executives for allegedly conspiring to bribe a Philippine election official in exchange for more than $180 million in contracts tied to the 2016 Philippine elections.5U.S. Department of Justice. Four Men Charged in Philippine Bribery and Money Laundering Scheme In October 2025, a superseding indictment added Smartmatic’s parent company, SGO Corporation Limited, as a defendant and broadened the charges to include conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and money laundering counts.6U.S. Department of Justice. Voting Machine Company Charged in Philippine Bribery and Money Laundering Scheme
Smartmatic moved to dismiss the superseding indictment in March 2026, arguing the prosecution is “vindictive and selective” and driven by the Trump administration’s animus over Smartmatic’s defamation suits against the president’s allies.7The Washington Post. Smartmatic Trump Vindictive Prosecution Claim That motion is still pending. Reports indicate Smartmatic turned down a plea deal before the corporate indictment was filed.8Global Investigations Review. Smartmatic Turned Down Plea Deal Before Indictment, DOJ Says
Fox has tried to use the criminal case to its advantage in the civil suit. In November 2025, Fox asked Cohen to pause the defamation case until the criminal charges resolve, calling the indictment “powerful rebuttal evidence” against Smartmatic’s reputation and damages claims. Cohen denied the stay, saying it would cause “undue delay” and that bribery allegations tied to the Philippines would not be decisive of defamation claims about the 2020 U.S. election.9Courthouse News Service. Fox Loses Bid to Pause Smartmatic Defamation Case in Wake of Charges Against Voting Machine Company The Appellate Division affirmed that denial in May 2026, agreeing the criminal allegations “will not be decisive of the issues in the instant case” and noting that Smartmatic executives’ repeated invocation of the Fifth Amendment during depositions was not enough to warrant a stay.1New York Courts. Smartmatic USA Corp. v Fox Corp.
Fox Won More Discovery on the Indictment’s Business Impact
The same May 7, 2026 appellate ruling gave Fox something it wanted. The court vacated the Note of Issue for a limited purpose: to let Fox conduct discovery into how the superseding indictment has affected Smartmatic’s business. It called the corporate indictment an “unusual and unanticipated circumstance” and found Fox would be “substantially prejudiced” without a chance to investigate the impact on Smartmatic’s lost-profits claims.10Washington Examiner. Fox News Additional Discovery Smartmatic Case
The ruling extended discovery Fox had already been granted regarding earlier Venezuela-related bribery allegations to cover Los Angeles County allegations in the superseding indictment. The court drew a line: discovery must focus on the criminal allegations’ impact on Smartmatic’s business, not on whether the bribery allegations are true.1New York Courts. Smartmatic USA Corp. v Fox Corp. Fox said it was “pleased with the court’s decision.”10Washington Examiner. Fox News Additional Discovery Smartmatic Case
Vacating the Note of Issue means the case is no longer trial-ready. The additional discovery has to be completed before the litigation can move forward.
Both Sides Have Accused the Other of Destroying Evidence
In May 2025, Smartmatic alleged that Fox Corporation executives, including Rupert Murdoch and Lachlan Murdoch, intentionally destroyed text messages from November and December 2020, the period when the false election claims aired. Smartmatic asked the judge to instruct jurors that they may presume the destroyed messages would have hurt Fox’s defense. Fox called the allegations a “desperate attempt to distract” and said the issues had been resolved years earlier.11CNN. Smartmatic Accuses Fox News, Rupert Murdoch of Destroying Evidence
Fox filed its own sanctions motion later that month, alleging that Smartmatic founder Antonio Mugica ordered president Roger Piñate Jr. to delete WhatsApp messages about “critical damages issues” shortly before the lawsuit was filed. Fox said nearly two dozen Smartmatic executives and sales staff deleted mobile data, and that one executive directed subordinates to alter customer records to bolster damages claims. Fox asked the court to strike all lost-profits claims after 2022 and to give jurors an adverse-inference instruction. Smartmatic’s attorney called the motion “baseless attacks” and “retaliation.”12Denver Gazette. Fox News Seeks Sanctions Against Smartmatic Over Deleted Evidence Neither spoliation motion has been publicly resolved.
Does the Dominion Settlement Predict How This Ends?
Fox paid $787.5 million in April 2023 to settle a similar $1.6 billion defamation suit brought by Dominion Voting Systems, just as jury selection was set to begin in Delaware. Fox did not apologize or issue a retraction, saying only: “We acknowledge the Court’s rulings finding certain claims about Dominion to be false.”13NPR. Fox News Settles Blockbuster Defamation Lawsuit With Dominion Voting Systems14Deadline. Fox News Settlement With Dominion Does Not Require On-Air Retraction or Apology
Smartmatic reached a separate confidential settlement with Newsmax in September 2024 during jury selection in Delaware and said afterward it was turning its focus to the Fox case.15NPR. Newsmax Smartmatic Settlement Defamation Election Lawsuit Fox has publicly maintained it intends to litigate rather than settle. Its last-minute Dominion deal in similar circumstances leaves that stance open to question.
What Has to Happen Before a Trial
Three things gate the case. Discovery reopened by the May 2026 appellate ruling has to be completed. Cohen has to rule on the pending cross-motions for summary judgment, which will determine which issues survive for a jury. The unresolved spoliation motions on both sides could reshape what evidence and instructions the jury sees. Only after those steps can the court set a trial date. In the meantime, Smartmatic keeps fighting the Florida criminal case that Fox is using to attack its credibility and damages, while arguing that prosecution is politically motivated.