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An attorney for Hogan, whose legal name is Terry Bollea,
praised Judge Pamela Campbell's decision to deny Gawkwer's
motion for a new trial. Campbell this year presided over the
jury trial in state civil court in St. Petersburg, Florida, near
the wrestler's home.
The mustachioed former professional wrestler's legal fight has
drawn wide attention for testing a celebrity's privacy rights
and press freedoms in the digital age.
"Gawker has failed and continues to fail in recognizing their
obligation to Bollea for their reprehensible behavior and method
of doing what they call journalism," his attorney, David
Houston, said in a statement.
Before the decision, the New York-based media outlet had said it
planned to bring its case before an appeals court.
"We look forward to the legal process continuing and expect to
be vindicated," Gawker said in a statement after Wednesday's
hearing ended.
In March, a six-person jury awarded $60 million to Hogan, 62,
for emotional distress and $55 million for economic damages. The
jury then slapped another $25 million in punitive damages on the
company and its publisher and CEO, Nick Denton.
Hogan sued the website for posting a one-minute, 41-second
edited video clip in 2012 featuring him having sex with the wife
of his then-best friend, the radio shock jock Bubba the Love
Sponge Clem. He testified that he did not know that their
consensual tryst was being recorded when it occurred nearly a
decade ago inside Clem's home.
Forbes reported this week that Silicon Valley billionaire Peter
Thiel helped to bankroll his legal fight. Thiel was the subject
of a 2007 Gawker article calling him gay, published when he was
keeping mum publicly about his sexuality.
"There are very serious questions about whether Hulk Hogan
financially benefited," Gawker's statement noted in reference to
the report. "And this case is far from over."
(Reporting by Letitia Stein; Editing by Bill Trott and David
Gregorio)
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