Judge in Dominion's $1.6bn defamation case against Fox News may appoint special master

‘I am very concerned... that there have been misrepresentations to the court. This is very serious’

Ahead of jury selection in Dominion Voting Systems' $1.6bn defamation case against Fox News, the Delaware Supreme Court Judge on the case is planning to appoint a "special master" to help determine whether the news company withheld key information and evidence.

Judge Eric Davis said he was considering the appointment on Wednesday, CNN reports, days before the trial is due to start.

Dominion accuses Fox News of knowingly spreading false information about its voting machines in the wake of the 2020 presidential election in support of Donald Trump's false claims that the election had been "stolen" from him.

Fox News insists it was entitled to report the claims being made against Dominion.

A special master is typically an attorney appointed to "supervise those falling under the order of the court to make sure that the court order is being followed, and to report on the activities of the entity being supervised in a timely matter to the judge or the judge's designated representatives".

Last year, a special master was appointed to oversee a trove of papers – some said to be top secret – found at Mr Trump's Mar-a-Lago home.

The appointment in the Dominion case revolves around whether Fox attorneys misled the court by representing Rupert Murdoch as merely an officer at Fox Corporation and not revealing he was also a corporate officer at Fox News.

The judge criticised Fox attorneys, saying: "I am very concerned... that there have been misrepresentations to the court. This is very serious."

On Tuesday, Justin Nelson, an attorney for the voting tech company, said he was frustrated at Fox after finding out key information about Mr Murdoch's dual role.

Rupert Murdoch (AFP via Getty Images)

"This alone has meant that we are missing a whole bunch of Rupert Murdoch documents that we otherwise would have been entitled to," Mr Nelson said, according to the Washington Post. "It's very troubling that this is where we are. It's something that has really affected how we have litigated this case."

Judge Davis ordered Fox to preserve all internal communications related to Mr Murdoch.

Fox denies any wrongdoing over the issue and says Mr Murdoch's roles in its public financial filings were properly disclosed. "Nobody intentionally withheld information" from Dominion, said Fox attorney Dan Webb.

The trial will begin with two days of jury selection from 13 April. It is not yet clear whether Mr Murdoch will testify .