You've probably seen the headlines. Mike Lindell, the guy who made a fortune selling pillows on late-night TV, is buried under a mountain of legal paperwork that would make most corporate lawyers sweat. But if you’re looking for a single, tidy "RICO case" with a smoking gun, you’re gonna find things are a lot messier than that.
The term RICO—the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act—gets thrown around a lot lately. It’s got that "mob boss" energy that people love to use when they’re talking about high-stakes litigation. While Lindell has been a central figure in massive legal battles with Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic, the reality of the "Mike Lindell RICO lawsuit" is a tangled web of defamation, breach of contract, and some very aggressive civil racketeering allegations that haven't always stuck the way his critics hoped.
The RICO Allegations: More Than Just Defamation?
Basically, the whole RICO angle stems from the idea that Lindell wasn't just speaking his mind—he was running a coordinated campaign. In the massive $1.3 billion lawsuit filed by Dominion Voting Systems, they didn't just stop at saying "he lied about us." They painted a picture of a "viral marketing campaign" where election conspiracy theories were the product used to sell more pillows.
Dominion’s legal team argued that Lindell used his "FrankSpeech" platform and various "Cyber Symposiums" as an enterprise to spread falsehoods. They sort of framed it as a racketeering-style operation:
- Spreading a "Big Lie" to gain an audience.
- Directing that audience to buy MyPillow products using promo codes like "FRAUD."
- Using the profits to fund more claims.
It’s a clever legal strategy, but it’s also incredibly hard to prove in court. Usually, RICO is for the Mafia or massive drug cartels. Applying it to a guy selling bedding while shouting about packet captures is... well, it’s a stretch that judges look at very skeptically.
The $2.3 Million Verdict: A Real-World Reality Check
While everyone was waiting for a RICO bombshell, a much more traditional legal hammer dropped in June 2025. A federal jury in Denver decided that Lindell actually did cross the line into defamation. They weren't looking at a massive conspiracy; they were looking at what he said about one guy: Eric Coomer.
Coomer was an executive at Dominion. Lindell called him a "traitor" and a "criminal." He told his audience that Coomer was part of the "biggest crime this world has ever seen." The jury didn't buy the "it's just my opinion" defense. They ordered Lindell and his company, FrankSpeech, to pay roughly $2.3 million.
Honestly, though, Lindell called it a victory. Why? Because the jury didn't find MyPillow Inc. liable. For Mike, keeping the pillow company separate from his personal legal disasters is the only way he stays afloat. He’s currently deep in debt—he’s admitted to being $10 million in the hole—but as long as the company isn't the one paying the $2.3 million, he sees a path forward.
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The Smartmatic Struggle and the "Nine-Figure" Threat
If you think the Coomer case was a headache, the Smartmatic situation is a migraine. In September 2025, U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Bryan made a pretty devastating ruling. He basically said that 51 different statements Lindell made about Smartmatic were "defamatory per se."
Basically, the judge said there's no way a reasonable person could think Lindell's claims about Smartmatic rigging the 2020 election in Los Angeles County were true. Smartmatic is now gunning for "nine-figure damages." We're talking hundreds of millions of dollars.
Here is how that case is breaking down:
- The Falsity: The judge already ruled the statements were false. No more debating that.
- The Malice: The next step is proving Lindell knew they were false or acted with "reckless disregard."
- The Damages: This is where the "RICO-lite" stuff comes back. Smartmatic wants to prove that Lindell’s "enterprise" caused them irreparable business harm.
It's Not Just Voting Machines: The DHL and FedEx Problems
While everyone focuses on the political drama, Lindell’s business is getting hit from the sides by the "boring" stuff. Logistics.
In January 2025, a judge ordered MyPillow to pay nearly $780,000 to DHL. They had a settlement, MyPillow missed payments, and the court wasn't in a forgiving mood. Then, right outside the Denver courthouse in mid-2025, Lindell got served with another lawsuit—this time from FedEx for $9 million in unpaid fees.
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You've gotta wonder how a company that was once a household name ends up getting sued by the people who deliver the product. It suggests a massive cash-flow crunch. Lindell has even resorted to "merchant cash advances"—which are basically payday loans for businesses with interest rates as high as 360%. He’s actually suing those lenders now, calling them "loan sharks."
Why the "Prove Mike Wrong" Win Mattered
It hasn't been all losses for the Pillow King. In July 2025, the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals handed him a huge win. Remember Robert Zeidman? He was the software engineer who took the "Prove Mike Wrong Challenge" and claimed he debunked Lindell’s data. An arbitration panel originally said Lindell had to pay him $5 million.
The appeals court tossed it. They said the arbitrators overstepped their authority. For Lindell, this was a massive morale boost. It didn't prove his election data was right, but it proved he didn't have to pay $5 million for being wrong in that specific contest.
What’s Actually Happening Next?
If you’re trying to keep track of the Mike Lindell RICO lawsuit and the surrounding chaos, here is the roadmap for the rest of 2026:
- The Smartmatic Trial: This is the big one. Now that the judge has ruled the statements were false, the trial will focus on "actual malice." If Smartmatic wins, the price tag could literally bankrupt Lindell.
- The Dominion Fallout: The main Dominion case is still grinding through the system. Expect more "RICO-style" arguments about how the MyPillow brand was used to amplify election claims.
- The Gubernatorial Run: Lindell has been teasing a run for Governor of Minnesota. He’s recently re-established residency there. Whether he can run a campaign while being buried in lawsuits is anyone's guess.
- The Debt Struggle: With millions owed to lawyers (some of whom have already quit because he couldn't pay them) and millions more in shipping disputes, the financial stability of MyPillow is on life support.
Practical Takeaways for the Business Observer
If you're watching this as a business case study, the lesson isn't just about politics. It's about brand decoupling. Lindell tied his personal identity and his political crusade so tightly to his company that when one took a hit, the other bled out.
Most CEOs have a "board of directors" to tell them when to shut up. Lindell is the board. And while that gave him the freedom to say whatever he wanted, it also removed the safety net that usually protects a multi-million dollar corporation from a "RICO-style" legal collapse.
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What you can do now:
- Watch the Smartmatic damages hearing scheduled for late 2026; it will set the tone for the remaining Dominion litigation.
- Monitor MyPillow’s retail presence; if they lose more "big box" distribution, the legal fees will likely outpace their revenue.
- Look for the official order on the FedEx lawsuit; $9 million in shipping debt is often the "canary in the coal mine" for a retail company’s insolvency.