A New York state appeals court rejected Fox Corp. bid to throw out a defamation lawsuit by Smartmatic over false claims that the voting technology company helped rig the 2020 presidential election. The ruling on Thursday allows the case to proceed toward trial.

In its initial 2024 complaint, Smartmatic accused Fox News of making “over 100 false statements and implications” about the company. Judges wrote this week that Smartmatic's claims that Fox News ran “a disinformation campaign in [its] post-election coverage” were enough to warrant a trial.

Fox Corp , the parent of Fox News Network, failed to convince a New York state appeals court to dismiss a defamation claim in electronic voting systems company Smartmatic's $2.7 billion lawsuit over the network's 2020 post-election coverage.