A federal appeals court on Wednesday affirmed a nearly $1 million penalty levied against former President Donald Trump and his legal team for pursuing a racketeering lawsuit against Hillary Clinton and other Democrats stemming from the 2016 election.
The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of Trump’s $24 million lawsuit, agreeing with a lower court that many of the legal arguments presented were “frivolous.”
The three-judge panel also confirmed the decision by U.S. District judge Donald M. Middlebrooks of Southern Florida to sanction Trump and attorney Alina Habba,now the acting U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, ordering them to pay $937,989.39 for what the judge deemed “bad faith” arguments.
The lawsuit alleged that Clinton and others conspired to falsely portray Trump’s campaign as colluding with Russia to “discredit,delegitimize and defame” him.
Judge Middlebrooks previously found the suit was based on unsubstantiated claims, citing a “malicious prosecution claim without a prosecution” and a “trade secret claim without a trade secret.”
“This case should never have been brought. Its inadequacy as a legal claim was evident from the start. No reasonable lawyer would have filed it,” Middlebrooks wrote in his initial ruling, adding the suit appeared intended to “harass” and serve a “political purpose.”
The judge asserted that Trump, a frequent litigant, was aware of the implications of filing the lawsuit. “Mr. Trump is a prolific and sophisticated litigant who is repeatedly using the courts to seek revenge on political adversaries… He knew full well the impact of his actions,” Middlebrooks stated.
A spokesman for Trump’s legal team responded to the ruling by stating it “continues to fight back against all democrat-led Witch Hunts, including the ‘Russia, Russia, russia’ hoax.”
“President Trump will continue to pursue this matter to its just and rightful conclusion,” the spokesman said.
