The Delaware court has ruled that Fox Corporation must provide access to hundreds of documents linked to scandals handled by Rupert Murdoch. This decision, stemming from a lawsuit involving Fox Corp. shareholders, examines Murdoch’s management of significant controversies affecting his media outlets over the past two decades.
The legal proceedings, ongoing for three years, aim to hold Rupert Murdoch, his son Lachlan, and various board members accountable for strategies that have led to repeated scandals and costly litigation. The catalyst for the lawsuit was Fox’s nearly $800 million settlement with Dominion Voting Systems. Dominion accused the network of spreading false narratives about the 2020 election.
Additionally, another defamation lawsuit from Smartmatic USA against Fox is in progress, seeking $2.7 billion. This, alongside the undisclosed settlement with Seth Rich’s family and the phone hacking scandal in Britain, forms the basis of shareholder concerns. These scandals have cost News Corp., another Murdoch company, approximately $1.5 billion. Fox Corp. separated from News Corp. post-scandal to safeguard U.S. television licenses.
The shareholders’ case relies heavily on understanding Rupert Murdoch’s relationship with Jacques Nasser, former CEO of Ford Motor Co. Nasser, a long-serving independent director on Murdoch’s boards, might offer insights into corporate decisions potentially benefitting the Murdochs over the company. If his independence is compromised, more than half of Fox’s board may be deemed non-independent, pushing the case toward trial.
Despite attempts from Fox’s attorneys to withhold documents, Delaware’s Vice Chancellor Bonnie David mandated their release. Among these are 700 documents referencing “phone hacking,” board meeting records, and emails from Nasser’s Ford accounts. These documents could reveal how Rupert Murdoch and other board members were selected and how past communications were managed.
Particularly, attention is on Nasser’s role over his decade-long tenure on the British Sky Broadcasting board and support during the phone hacking scandal. His backing of stock buyback strategies reportedly increased the Murdoch family’s influence. He also served on boards of 21st Century Fox and Fox Corp., aligning with Rupert Murdoch’s broader agenda.
Nasser and Murdoch’s links extend to shared membership in the American Australian Association, founded by Murdoch’s father. Notably, Murdoch used to auto-delete his text messages until April 2022, post-Dominion lawsuit filing. Despite Fox’s lawyer Anitha Reddy stating Murdoch’s preference for email over text, acknowledgment came that some text messages were not preserved.
In response to Fox’s document retention issues, Vice Chancellor David sided with shareholders. Fox now must disclose email addresses used by Murdoch and Nasser and provide extensive board meeting minutes. Shareholders’ attorneys will examine sealed documents from the Smartmatic case, revealing Murdoch’s record destruction practices.
Meanwhile, accusations from Fox’s attorneys targeted Dominion and Smartmatic for similar evidence destruction, seeking sanctions. The Dominion case raised allegations from the voting tech company against Fox personalities and executives for neglecting to preserve crucial communications.