CNN has hired new lawyers after the network failed to reach a settlement in a defamation lawsuit brought by a Navy veteran.

The plaintiff, Zachary Young, accuses CNN of disparaging his security consulting firm Nemex Enterprises Inc. by suggesting that it illegally profited by helping people escape Afghanistan Biden administration Military withdrawal from the country in 2021.

According to court documents obtained by Fox News Digital, CNN hired Dave Axelrod and Joe Bailey of the law firm Ballard Spahr LLP. This came just days after settlement negotiations between Young and the network collapsed.

CNN fails to settle defamation lawsuit with Marine veteran who says Jake Tapper segment ‘destroyed his reputation’

“More lawyers are failing to change the underlying facts showing that CNN defamed Mr. Young, and did so maliciously, and must therefore face the consequences this January. It won’t change the outcome,” Young’s attorney, Vel Freeman, told Fox News Digital.

CNN did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. A representative for Ballard Spahr declined to comment.

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Axelrod, not to be confused with former Obama adviser and CNN contributor David Axelrod, has been involved in other high-profile cases. He was part of the New York Times’ victorious legal team that defeated a libel lawsuit against former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. Last month, however, Palin successfully won her bid for a retrial.

It was also used by actress Amber Heard in her appeal against the libel judgment won by her ex-husband Johnny Depp.

Defamation lawsuit against Cnn could expose company’s financial secrets as court seeks to disclose assets

Young, a U.S. Navy veteran, believes CNN “destroyed his reputation and business by branding him an illegal profiteer” in a November 11, 2021 segment on CNN’s “The Lead with Jake Tapper.” “exploiting desperate Afghans.”

The CNN segment, which was shared on social media and also repackaged for the CNN website, began with Tapper informing viewers that CNN correspondent Alex Marquardt discovered that “Afghans trying to take over the country leaving, facing a black market full of promises and demands for excessive fees. and no guarantee of safety or success.”

Tapper turned to Marquardt, who said “desperate Afghans are being exploited” and are having to pay “exorbitant, often impossible amounts” to flee the country. Marquardt then lashed out at Young, showing a picture of his face on the screen and saying his company was charging $75,000 to transport a vehicle with passengers to Pakistan, for $14,500 per person to do so in the United Arab Emirates land.

“Prices that are far beyond the reach of most Afghans,” Marquardt told viewers.

CNN faces defamation lawsuit over Afghanistan withdrawal story: “Evidence of actual malice”

“We got Young’s number and called, but he didn’t answer. In a text message, he told CNN that ‘Afghans who try to leave are expected to be paid by sponsors. If someone has come forward, we need to know if that is the case.’ “You have a sponsor behind you who is able to pay the evacuation costs, which are very volatile and depend on environmental conditions,” Marquardt continued. “Young repeatedly declined to break down costs or say whether he makes money.”

No other people or companies were named other than Young.

“In another message, the person offering these evacuations, Zachary Young, wrote: ‘Availability is extremely limited and demand is high’… He continues: ‘Unfortunately that’s how the economy works,'” Marquardt told viewers.

Tapper replied, “Unfortunately, hmm,” before thanking Marquardt for the report.

The Media Research Center’s NewsBusters exclusively received A filing shows the case is expected to be heard in January 2025.

“The mediator submits his report to the court and informs that a mediation conference was held on September 11, 2024, at which the parties and registered lawyers appeared in person. “The court is further informed that the parties have been unable to reach an agreement and an impasse has been declared,” reads the court document published by NewsBusters.

Nicholas Fondacaro, associate editor of NewsBusters, wrote that “the amount offered to drop the lawsuit was not disclosed” but “it would have to have been quite large to meet the appeal of a possible billion dollars (possibly more) between compensatory , emotional, and punitive damages.”

Earlier this month, Judge William Henry Young cleared the way to issue a subpoena to CNN to release sensitive financial information Cable network presented to parent company Warner Bros. Discovery. The decision was essentially made so that Young and his legal team could determine the cable network’s net worth.

A civil trial is scheduled to begin on January 6, 2025 before Judge Henry in the District Court for Bay County, Florida.

Original source of the article: CNN hires new lawyers as a Marine veteran’s defamation lawsuit moves forward