Kari Lake, former gubernatorial candidate and current U.S. Senate hopeful, has filed a motion in Maricopa County Superior Court seeking a prompt judgment in the defamation case brought against her by Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer.
Lake, in a letter that is heated in places, given to Ben Bergquam on Monday, says the defamation case is really for “to interfere with the 2024 USA Senate race in Arizona by using vexation litigation to drain Kari Lake, the leading Republican candidate of financial resources and two to interfere with her campaign by keeping her off the campaign trail in creating a barrage of negative media hit pieces, and three to create a publicity and fundraising platform for Richer for his 2024, re-election campaign is Maricopa County Recorder.”
Richer accused Lake of making false claims suggesting his involvement in rigging the election against her. In response, Lake’s legal team has not contested Richer’s allegations but instead requested a swift hearing to determine the damages she will owe.
Richer’s team interprets this motion as an admission of liability on Lake’s part. Lake has other plans.
Lake’s accusations against Richer, which he built his defamation case on, included claims of intentional election sabotage and ballot manipulation, which were made during a public rally and subsequently spread online.
Richer’s lawsuit contends that these statements caused significant harm, including harassment and damage to his reputation. Despite the impending trial’s discovery phase, Lake’s filing at the time suggested a shift in strategy, opting for a judgment on damages rather than continuing legal proceedings.
Lake demands Richer to prove that her statements damaged his reputation and, in a new letter, accuses him of actually benefitting from the battle with Lake, which can be demonstrated by Richer’s online statements bragging and showing increased fundraising.
Lake’s team, in the newest filing, accuses Richer of commenting on the movie Jaws to show that he was going on a fishing expedition by planning a burdensome discovery process- to punish Lake.
Richer’s legal representatives had viewed Lake’s default filing last month as a concession. They stressed the lack of evidence supporting her allegations and emphasized the absurdity of accusing Richer, a fellow Republican, of election interference.
Lake and her team are calling the whole thing Lawfare.
In an update on Monday, Timothy Losota, PLC’s attorney, wrote a blistering letter to Daniel Maynard and Douglas Erickson regarding the defendant’s position in the Richer versus Lake case.
The defendant, Lake, rejected plaintiff Steven Richer’s proposed confidentiality order. They assert that the lawsuit was filed for improper purposes, including interfering with the 2024 USA Senate race in Arizona and creating a fundraising platform for Richer’s re-election campaign.
The letter questions the need for a complex scheduling order and highlights the lack of necessity for extensive legal proceedings.
Additionally, the letter claims the defendants’ right to participate fully in the default judgment hearing and emphasizes that the default does not absolve Richer of proving proximate damages.
Here is the letter:
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