A Georgian-American businessman can proceed with his lawsuit against Robert Mueller over allegedly erroneous references in the former special counsel’s report on Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election, a federal appeals court in Washington has ruled. Giorgi Rtskhiladze contends that a footnote in the Mueller report inaccurately connected him to rumored compromising tapes of former President Donald Trump, causing reputational harm.
The US Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit revived Rtskhiladze’s suit, providing grounds for him to litigate the defamation claims against Mueller. The appellate panel emphasized that the errors in the Mueller report could indeed have a detrimental impact on Rtskhiladze’s reputation.
The Mueller report, which documented Russian attempts to influence the 2016 election, did not conclude that the Trump campaign had colluded with Russian officials. Nevertheless, references within the report, including those inaccurately mentioning Rtskhiladze, have had significant legal repercussions.
More details on this development can be found in the Bloomberg Law article.