Lin Wood Kicked Off Delaware Court Case Over ‘Toxic’ Post-Election Lawsuits

Topline

Conservative attorney L. Lin Wood was removed from representing former Trump campaign advisor Carter Page in a lawsuit in Delaware state court Monday, as the judge declared Wood’s “frivolous” and error-ridden lawsuits attempting to overturn the election results made him unfit to serve as an attorney in the case and marking the latest repercussion faced by lawyers pushing failed post-election lawsuits.

Key Facts

Crucial Quote

“The conduct of Mr. Wood, albeit not in my jurisdiction, exhibited a toxic stew of mendacity, prevarication and surprising incompetence,” Karsnitz wrote. “What has been shown in Court decisions of our sister States satisfies me that it would be inappropriate and inadvisable to continue Mr. Wood’s permission to practice before this Court.”

Chief Critic

In his response to Karsnitz’s initial order asking Wood to explain why he should not be removed from the case, Wood cited reasons including claiming Karsnitz did not have the power to say he violated the state’s rules for professional conduct, the fact Wood was only a party in the Georgia lawsuit instead of an attorney and claiming the errors in the Wisconsin litigation were only “proofreading errors.” Wood’s defenses did not “hold merit” with Karsnitz, the judge wrote, and the attorney cited cases in his defense that “are inapposite and of no avail.”

Key Background

Wood, along with Powell, has been one of the most notorious purveyors of the GOP’s post-election efforts to overturn President-elect Joe Biden’s victory, pushing wild conspiracy theories that have no basis in fact and filing failed lawsuits that have been widely criticized for their numerous errors. Though Wood and Powell have reportedly spoken with President Donald Trump about their voter fraud allegations, the two attorneys—particularly Wood—have faced pushback from even Trump allies for things like urging Georgia voters not to vote in the recent runoff elections. Wood was also recently kicked off Twitter for suggesting last week’s violent attack on the U.S. Capitol building was “staged” by antifa. Wood’s removal from the Delaware case comes as attorneys involved in the GOP’s overwhelmingly unsuccessful post-election litigation are starting to face consequences, including Dominion Voting Systems filing a $1.3 billion defamation lawsuit against Powell for peddling a false conspiracy theory about its voting machines. That lawsuit also involves Wood, as it names Powell and Wood’s joint fundraising venture Defending the Republic, Inc as a defendant.

Further Reading

Lawyer Wood Booted Off Carter Page Case as Judge Rips Incitement (Bloomberg Law)

Judge Says Lin Wood’s Post-Election Lawsuits May Have Violated Several Professional Rules, Orders Him to Respond (Law & Crime)

Dominion, Smartmatic Strike Back: Trump And His Lawyers Face Possible Legal Consequences For Flimsy Election Challenges (Forbes)

Trump’s Legal Allies Attack Each Other After Lin Wood Tweets Wild Conspiracies (Forbes)

Lin Wood—Lawyer Closely Tied To Trump—Permanently Banned From Twitter After Claiming Capitol Siege Was ‘Staged’ (Forbes)