Dominion Voting Systems settles defamation lawsuit against Fox News for $787.5 million.
The defamation lawsuit settlement of $787.5 million, which ended Dominion Voting Systems' legal action against Fox Corp (FOXA.O), also concludes a profitable two-year legal battle for the numerous teams of high-priced attorneys from both sides. Court documents reveal that at least 31 lawyers from nine law firms were involved in the case.
31 lawyers from nine law firms were involved in the case, with Susman Godfrey representing Dominion on a contingency fee arrangement
Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis praised the legal teams involved in the case, remarking that he had not witnessed such exceptional lawyering during his 13-year tenure on the bench. Law firm Susman Godfrey, one of the two firms representing Dominion in the lawsuit, was retained on a contingency fee arrangement, according to a source familiar with the agreement. The firm gave Dominion a significant discount, viewing the case as a pursuit of accountability for election-related falsehoods. The exact percentage of the legal fees that the firm will receive from the settlement is unknown, and a Dominion spokesperson declined to comment on the matter.
According to court documents, Dominion had incurred out-of-pocket legal expenses of roughly $12.2 million from November 2020 through October 2022, which included fees paid to the law firms and legal consulting firms retained by the company. These figures do not reflect the costs associated with preparing for trial or the success fees that lawyers could earn from the settlement.
Susman Godfrey, a law firm specializing in business litigation, was among the first to use contingency fees in such cases. This approach, more commonly used for personal-injury lawsuits, has been advertised on Susman's website and included costs as high as one-third of a settlement in previous cases. On the other hand, partners at larger corporate law firms, like those representing Fox, have billed more than $2,000 per hour in some cases, according to filings. The teams representing Fox News and parent company Fox Corp, led by two partners and multiple associates each, were fielded by Winston & Strawn and DLA Piper, respectively. On the other hand, Dominion hired Susman Godfrey and Clare Locke, a defamation-specialized law firm representing Sarah Palin in a libel lawsuit against The New York Times. The success of contingency fee arrangements is evident from past examples, with Susman Godfrey and another plaintiffs' firm earning about $106 million in 2018 from a class action that secured $590 million in combined settlements with central banks. Furthermore, Susman Godfrey took one-third of the cash component of a $92.5 million class action settlement last year to resolve allegations that Voya Retirement Insurance and Annuity Company breached its contract with tens of thousands of life insurance policyholders, according to court records. Finally, Staple Street Capital Group LLC, the small buyout firm that owns Dominion, is also set to receive a significant windfall from the settlement.
