US judge fines ex-president Donald Trump and one of his attorneys nearly 1mn for Clinton lawsuit

A federal US judge has ruled that ex-president Donald Trump and one of his attorneys must pay a combined penalty of nearly one million dollars for filing a baseless lawsuit claiming former secretary of state  Hillary Clinton had tried to rig the 2016 election.

US District Court judge, Donald Middlebrooks, issued a strong ruling against Mr Trump and his attorney, Alina Habba, for misusing the legal system by filing a baseless lawsuit. The judge said that the lawsuit was



filed with the intent of causing harm. Mr Trump had accused Hillary Clinton and the Democratic National Committee of being involved in racketeering and conspiring against him.

The lawsuit was dismissed in September, and Mr Trump was ordered to pay tens of thousands of dollars in November after one defendant sought sanctions. The recent order came after a group of the remaining defendants, including Clinton, requested sanctions as well.