Hunter Biden to Receive $1.7 Million in Defamation Lawsuit
Hunter Biden was favored by the outcome of a lawsuit he filed when he felt defamed and will receive $1.7 million in punitive damages
Hunter Biden, son of former President Joe Biden, will receive $1.7 million in compensation arising from a defamation lawsuit filed against Patrick Byrne, founder of Overstock.com, one of the first large electronic retailers in the United States.
The Indiana businessman accused the controversial Delaware lawyer of participating in an alleged $800 million bribery scheme fueled by Iran in exchange for the Democratic administration releasing $8 billion in previously frozen funds to the Tehran government.
In 2023, the scion of the Democrat who governed the nation for four years, flatly denied the allegations made against him and filed a lawsuit against the businessman.
“He made, published and repeated false and defamatory statements, knowing them to be false, for the purpose of subjecting the plaintiff to harassment, intimidation and harm,” it said.
After analyzing the points presented by both parties, Stephen Wilson, judge of the Central District of California, decided to agree with Hunter Biden and even through a ruling ordered to compensate him after considering that Byrne acted with “intentional misrepresentation” and a projected “conscious disregard” for his rights, even encouraging his followers on social networks to spread false information.
“The most plausible explanation is that the defendant lacks credibility, invents incredible and far-fetched stories to attract media attention, and fabricated the defamatory story in question to damage the plaintiff's reputation,” indicates part of the order written by the magistrate, which was shared by Hunter Biden in a message published on platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
Judge Stephen Wilson determined that the son of the former president of the nation should receive one dollar in nominal damages along with $1.7 million in punitive damages.
“If Mr. Byrne decides to repeat any of these actions, we will be back in court,” warned Bryan Sullivan, Hunter Biden's lawyer.
Although Patrick Byrne can appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court, it is unknown if he will agree to pay the amount that was imposed as a penalty.