Today, the American Freedom Law Center (AFLC) filed a “motion for summary disposition” and request for attorneys’ fees and cost, seeking to dismiss as a matter of law a civil lawsuit filed by three Biden electors against sixteen Trump electors.
AFLC’s motion asserts that the civil claims brought against the Trump electors fail as a matter of law and are in fact “patently frivolous.”
AFLC is representing four of the Trump electors in this civil lawsuit filed in Kent County, Michigan. All sixteen Trump electors are also facing a politically-charged felony criminal complaint filed against them by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel.
As stated in AFLC’s brief filed in support of the motion:
Undoubtedly, the 2020 general election was contentious. But so are most general elections. For example, Al Gore repeatedly claimed that the 2000 election was “stolen” by George W. Bush. Hillary Clinton continues to claim that the 2016 election was “stolen” by Donald Trump, and she has publicly proclaimed that Donald Trump was an “illegitimate president.” It’s the nature of politics.
But not until recent times has a political party (the Democratic Party) sought to weaponize the courts and the legal process to punish those who questioned a general election. Unfortunately, a dangerous precedent has been set, and it is unclear how this will turn out. . . . This dangerous practice must stop, and this Court can play a role in helping to do so by granting this motion, dismissing the Complaint, and awarding [the Trump electors] their reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs for having to defend against this politically-motivated and patently frivolous lawsuit.
Unlike [the Biden electors’] Complaint, the point of this motion is not to relitigate the 2020 election—that shot is down range. Rather, the goal of this motion is to put a stop to the weaponization of the legal process to attack political opponents. Our republican form of government will not long sustain such an abusive use of the courts.
As AFLC’s filing makes evident, the Biden electors’ civil claims, which include a request for a declaratory judgment, conversion, false light/invasion of privacy, and conspiracy, have no basis in law and should be summarily dismissed.
As a sanction for filing this “patently frivolous” lawsuit, the Trump electors are asking the Court to order the Biden electors to pay their attorneys’ fees and costs.
The motion is set for a hearing via Zoom on January 5, 2024, at 9 am in the 17th Circuit Court for Kent County, Michigan, before the Honorable Christina Elmore.
Trump Electors' Brief in Support of Motion for Summary Disposition