The saga of Hunter Biden's defamation lawsuit against Patrick Byrne has taken another turn after the ex-Overstock CEO asked a judge to set aside a default judgment and allow him to mount a defense, with the help of his new attorney.
Former President Joe Biden's son filed the defamation lawsuit in late 2023, claiming that Byrne defamed him when he falsely accused him of committing "despicable and treasonous crimes" involving bribery and Iran. Biden alleged that Byrne was "told that his allegations are false" and that a retraction demand was made, but the named defendant "doubled down" in a subsequent post linking the plaintiff and his "purported crimes" to the "horrific terrorist attacks by Hamas on Israel."
Looking to stave off defeat by default, attorney Robert Tyler stated in a 28-page filing that Byrne has "vigorously defended his free speech rights" and has "good cause" for taking this off-ramp.
"Default judgments are generally disfavored, and this is especially true where Defendant has consistently and adamantly defended the matter. Here, Mr. Byrne has vigorously defended his free speech rights. Default only came about after a cascade of events resulted in him not receiving service of filings," Tyler claimed. "Moreover, Mr. Byrne did not engage in culpable conduct that led to the entry of default, he has meritorious defenses to the claims against him, and Plaintiff will not be prejudiced if this case is to go to trial. Therefore, Mr. Byrne should be allowed to...
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