Former prosecutors detail Fox's likely fears over damages that the jury could award

Former Watergate prosecutor Nick Akerman and federal prosecutor Renato Mariotti agreed that the settlement with Dominion Voting Systems was terrible news for Fox Corp.

MSNBC host Alicia Menendez asked Mariotti how that number was the one that was agreed upon. He explained that he was surprised by it, and that it's a significant number, but there is a chance Dominion was factoring in the cash they thought they'd get from the jury.

"I actually think this bakes in the potential punitive damages case," said Mariotti. "If you look at the actual value of Dominion, if you look at the amount of profits that were coming in, you would not arrive at this sum. There's no question that people were hoping that this would transform — this would save us all, right? I don't think that that happened, but for the dominion investors, they made a fortune off I, and part of the reason why is there was a fear on Fox's end of punitive damages. Katie [Phang] mentioned a moment ago, a special master looking at discovery issues. But I think there's also potential that the jury was going to award some measure of punitive damages."

Mariotti went on to explain that there was a message delivered to Fox, but he disagreed with Akerman on the impact.

"But I think it definitely sends a message and ultimately, at the end of the day, corporations do react to cost," he said. "They do react to incentives and disincentives that are placed on them. And I do agree with Nick that this does provide a strong disincentive for Fox in the future it will have some impact."

At the start of the discussion, Akerman explained that it was a huge win for the public and for those that believe in democracy. He called it a "death nail on the alternative facts and spewing of lies by Fox News."

One of the pieces of the puzzle are the insurance underwriters for Fox, which Akerman said was likely pressuring the network to settle.

See the panel discussion below or at the link here.

Former prosecutors detail Fox's likely fears over damages that the jury could award youtu.be