CVN screenshot of plaintiff attorney Todd Bice delivering his closing argument
Las Vegas, NV - A Nevada state court jury awarded $11 million on Friday to the former CEO of the Parler social media platform, finding billionaire financier Rebekah Mercer plotted to wrongfully strip John Matze of his ownership stake in the company, and the full trial was recorded gavel-to-gavel by Courtroom View Network.
The Clark County jury returned their verdict the same day they heard closing arguments in a long-running trial that began in late August. They awarded Matze $10.83 million in compensatory damages and $250,000 in punitive damages, finding that Mercer and others forced Matze out over fallout from Parler’s alleged involvement in the January 6, 2020 attack at the United States Capitol.
Matze accused Mercer, along with former defendant and ex-FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino, of using Parler’s supposed role in violence to cause him to lose his job and a 40 percent stake in the company, however the defense argued that Matze performed poorly in his role as CEO and was appropriately dismissed for cause.
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During the trial Matze’s attorney Todd Bice of Pisanelli Bice PLLC walked jurors through Parler’s history, explaining how the app began in 2018 as a conservative alternative to twitter with backing from prominent figures like Mercer, Bongino and current Vice President JD Vance.
After the trial, Bice, who asked jurors to award over $30 million in punitive damages during his closing argument, told reporters that with interest going back to 2021 he expected the actual compensatory award for Matze to reach $16 million.
Bice told jurors Parler swelled to 15 million users and Fox even considered acquiring it, but he insisted Matze was unfairly scapegoated for the platform’s banning from the Apple App Store in the wake of January 6 along with a sharp drop in users. He argued that under Matze’s direction, Parler actually cooperated with the FBI and suggested the “upstart” app was treated as a scapegoat by larger social media platforms to cover their own roles in January 6.
Both Bongino and Mercer testified live during the trial before Judge Maria Gall, though Bongino reached a confidential settlement with Matze midway through the proceedings.
Mercer’s attorney Chad Clement of Marquis Aurbach, who did not respond to media inquiries after the verdict, told jurors during the trial that Matze gave a number of media interviews in the wake of January 6 that caused enormous reputational damage to Parler and were the eventual reason for its drop in revenue.
CVN screenshot of defense attorney Chad Clement delivering his closing argument
Matze was warned about giving an interview to the New York Times in which he denied any responsibility for the insurrection that was later cited by Apple in its de-platforming decision.
Before settling out of the case, attorneys for Bongino, who at one point held a 7.5 percent stake in Parler, argued the former Deputy FBI Director and podcast host didn’t play an active role in the day-to-day management in the company while defending Matze’s dismissal as consistent with his contract.
The case is captioned John Matze v. Parler, et al., case number in Nevada’s Eighth Judicial District Court in Clark County.
