- The January 6 committee subpoenaed Verizon for Sidney Powell's phone records, court filings show.
- Powell is seeking to block the subpoena, citing privacy concerns and attorney-client privilege.
- Powell spread false and unproven claims of election fraud in 2020 and filed multiple failed lawsuits.
Sidney Powell, a former lawyer for former President Donald Trump, filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against Verizon, in an attempt to block the company from providing her phone records to the House committee investigating the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack.
The January 6 committee subpoenaed Verizon on February 1 for records related to multiple phone numbers, seeking records from November 1, 2020, to January 31, 2021, according to the lawsuit. Verizon informed Powell on February 4 that some of the phone numbers belonged to her.
The lawsuit, which was viewed by Insider, argues that the committee does not have the authority to seek Powell's records and that it is trying to act beyond its legal scope as an "inquisitorial tribunal seeking evidence of criminal activity." It also cites privacy concerns and attorney-client privilege as arguments for withholding the records, among others.
Powell is asking the court to declare the subpoena unlawful and unenforceable and to prohibit Verizon from handing over the records.
An attorney for Powell and a representative for Verizon did not respond to Insider's request for comment.
Powell served for a time on Trump's legal team in the wake of the 2020 election before his campaign fired her. She was a vocal proponent of false or unproven claims of mass voter and election fraud, filing multiple lawsuits in battleground states, which she compared to releasing "the Kraken," in an attempt to overturn President Joe Biden's wins. All the lawsuits failed.
Powell is facing defamation lawsuits worth more than $4 billion over the fraud claims, especially those that accused election-technology companies Dominion and Smartmatic of wrongdoing. Legal filings later showed that an internal Trump campaign memo dismissed theories about the two companies, but Powell continued to make the claims publicly.
Representatives for Rep. Bennie Thompson, chair of the January 6 committee, did not respond to requests for comment on the subpoena for Powell's phone records.
In January, the committee issued a subpoena to Powell, along with other Trump lawyers Rudy Giuliani, Jenna Ellis, and Boris Epshteyn, seeking documents and testimony.
Thompson said in a statement at the time that the four lawyers "advanced unsupported theories about election fraud, pushed efforts to overturn the election results, or were in direct contact with the former President about attempts to stop the counting of electoral votes."
The committee's announcement said Powell pushed failed election lawsuits in an attempt to overturn the election results and "actively promoted" election fraud claims on behalf of Trump.