On Thursday, a federal US judge fined former President Donald Trump and his lawyers nearly $1 million for a “frivolous” lawsuit alleging Hillary Clinton attempted to rig the 2016 election.
According to District Judge John Middlebrooks, the Republican, who is seeking re-election to the White House in 2024, has a “continuing pattern of misusing the courts” and filed the suit “in order to dishonestly advance a political narrative.”
The lawsuit, which Middlebrooks dismissed last year, claimed that Clinton and others had created a false narrative that his campaign had colluded with Russia.
Trump had sought $70 million in restitution.
The suit, however, “should never have been brought,” Middlebrooks wrote in a 45-page written court order.
“Its inadequacy as a legal claim was obvious from the beginning. No sane attorney would have filed it. “The amended complaint was intended for a political purpose, and none of the counts stated a cognizable legal claim,” the judge wrote.
Trump’s lawyer, Alina Habba, is also sanctioned under the order.
The couple is jointly and severally liable for the total amount imposed by Middlebrooks to cover the defendants’ legal fees and costs: $937,989.39.
According to Middlebrooks, Trump is “a prolific and sophisticated litigant who is repeatedly using the courts to seek vengeance on political adversaries.”
