Binance appoints trump lawyer who helped put Gawker Media out of business. In a lawsuit filed today in the U.S. District Court of New Jersey, Binance claimed that an article published by Forbes was defamatory and caused “millions of dollars” in damages.
The services of Charles Harder, the lawyer best known for defending Hulk Hogan (Terry Gene Bollea) in a case against Gawker Media, were retained by Binance. After the defendant posted parts of a sex tape on their website, he procured an award of $115 million in compensatory damages and a further $25 million in punitive damages for his client in 2016.
Harder’s prosecution directly led to the downfall of Gawker Media shortly thereafter. Peter Thiel, the billionaire founder of Palantir and co-founder of PayPal, helped finance the lawsuits after Gawker ran a headline that mentioned Thiel’s sexual orientation.
Harder also hit the headlines more recently when he represented Donald J. Trump in another sexually-charged case, filed against the President of the United States by Stormy Daniels (real name Stephanie Clifford). In this instance, Harder was on the winning side of an anti-SLAPP motion.
A ‘Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation’ suit is defined as a nuisance suit designed to dissuade critics from publishing materials by burdening them with substantial legal costs, and has become a favorite tactic of corporations and deep-pocketed figures, including politicians.
(Photo: Binance)
