A Utah judge ruled on Wednesday to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Phil Lyman, a former write-in candidate for governor, who accused two individuals with the same last name of receiving compensation from Gov. Spencer Cox’s campaign to run against him.
Judge Amber M. Mettler of the Third District Court granted a motion to dismiss from Richard and Carol Lyman, explaining that the defendants were protected under Utah’s Uniform Public Expression Protection Act. This law shields citizens from lawsuits arising from their exercise of free speech, including political activity. The judge noted that running for office is constitutionally protected, and all of the claims made by Phil Lyman stemmed from the defendants’ decision to run for governor.
Phil Lyman, who lost the Republican gubernatorial primary to Cox last June, refused to concede and launched a write-in campaign. The lawsuit targeted Richard and Carol Lyman, who also entered the race as write-in candidates. Phil Lyman accused them of being promised “$1,000 and a steak dinner” by the Cox campaign in exchange for running, which he argued was an attempt to confuse voters who intended to vote for him.
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Richard and Carol Lyman denied the allegations, and the Cox campaign dismissed the claims as “blatantly false.” The case sought $1.7 million in damages. After the lawsuit was filed, the Lymans withdrew from the race on October 25, agreeing that all write-in votes for “Lyman” would be counted for Phil Lyman.
Richard and Carol Lyman celebrated the court’s decision, with Richard calling the claims in the lawsuit “categorically false.” He added that they had the right to run for office and should not have been pressured to drop out due to the resources behind Phil Lyman’s campaign. Carol Lyman echoed his sentiment, expressing appreciation for the court’s fair ruling.
Phil Lyman expressed disappointment at the outcome, stating he was not surprised by the decision and criticized the media for not investigating his claims regarding the inducement of the other Lymans to run.
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In addition to dismissing the lawsuit, Judge Mettler ordered Phil Lyman to cover the legal costs and attorney fees of Richard and Carol Lyman. The exact amount of those costs has not been disclosed but will be filed in an affidavit on Friday.
This legal defeat adds to Phil Lyman’s recent losses in court. His attempt to challenge Gov. Cox’s office at the U.S. Supreme Court was also rejected after being dismissed by Utah’s high court.
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