The right-wing cable channel Newsmax will pay $67 million to settle a lawsuit accusing it of defaming Dominion Voting Systems by falsely claiming that the vote-counting machine maker rigged votes in the 2020 U.S. presidential election.

The settlement, reached on Aug. 15, was disclosed in a Monday filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Payments will be made in three installments, the last of which comes in 2027.

In a statement, Newsmax stood by its reporting and didnt offer an apology. Newsmax believed it was critically important for the American people to hear both sides of the election disputes that arose in 2020, the Company said in its statement, which noted that its coverage was fair, balanced and conducted within the professional standards of journalism. Dominion Voting Systems targeted 18 assertions Newsmax which has also settled libel lawsuit filed by a different voting machine maker, Smartmatic advanced on its cable new channel in the wake of the election. This included reporting that the company manipulated vote counts, is owned by a company founded in Venezuela to rig elections for Hugo Chavez, is paid kickbacks to government officials who used its machines in swing states and was involved in voting irregularities in Texas in 2018. Newsmax refused to issue a retraction, though it posted a notice on its website that said it has no evidence for its claims. Its lawyers did not contest that what Newsmax had broadcast about Dominion was false and claimed that the company was not at fault, according to court documents.

In April, the court cleared the case for trial, finding that Dominion presents clear and convincing evidence that the gist of the defamatory statements was inaccurate. If jurors decided that Newsmax broadcast the claims despite knowing they were lies or were recklessly indifferent to the truth, they wouldve determined the extent of damages.

Newsmax CEO Christopher Ruddy said the company settled, in part, because it wouldnt have received a fair trial. He pointed to rulings barring a jury from considering that Fox News had already paid Dominion $787 million in a similar suit and allowing overly intrusive discovery revealing unfavorable communications from company executives.

The Delaware Court under Judge Davis effectively enforced a confiscation of our property because our reporting was not always sympathetic to Joe Biden, Ruddy said in a statement. The actions taken against Newsmax, and earlier against Fox News, represent a direct attack on free speech and a free press.

The company added, The judiciarys willingness to punish news organizations for reporting on matters of urgent national debate undermines the role of the press in a free society.

Dominion didnt immediately respond to a request for comment.