Scott Atlas lawyer threatens defamation suit over critical Stanford open letter

Attorneys for Scott Atlas threatened to sue signatories of an open letter denouncing the doctor’s qualifications for his role on the White House’s coronavirus response team for defamation if they do not retract their statements.

Last week dozens of doctors and researchers affiliated with Stanford University signed onto a letter excoriating Atlas, who worked as a senior fellow at its Hoover Institution, saying they had a “moral and ethical responsibility” to denounce his claims about Covid-19 and his optimistic outlook on returning to normal life.

“Many of his opinions and statements run counter to established science and, by doing so, undermine public-health authorities and the credible science that guides effective public health policy,” the letter states.

Atlas does not appear to have a background in public health, epidemiology or infectious diseases. He has specialized in radiology and neuroradiology, including serving as chief of neuroradiology at Stanford University Medical Center.

The threat — penned by Marc Kasowitz of the firm Kasowitz Benson Torres LLP, who served as an outside counsel to President Donald Trump during the investigation into Russian election interference — gave the letter signers until the end of the day Friday to withdraw their claims or face legal action.

“[Y]our letter, which you wrote and sent with no regard for the truth, maliciously defames Dr. Atlas,” Kasowitz wrote. “We therefore demand that you immediately issue a press release withdrawing your letter and that you contact every media outlet worldwide that has reported on it to request an immediate correction of the record.”

Kasowitz’s letter was posted on Twitter by Michael Fischbach, a professor of microbiology and immunology at Stanford who signed onto the missive criticizing Atlas.

This content was originally published here.