Michigan considers sanctions against some lawyers who filed 2020 election challenges

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel is threatening to lodge sanctions against some lawyers who filed legal challenges to the 2020 election results in her state. 

Nessel said the standard for those she will seek to sanction is "intentional misrepresentations" in lawsuits.

"I think we need to go back to a time where you can trust an attorney is making an accurate and truthful representation to the court because if they don't, then they won't be able to practice law anymore," Nessel was quoted in The Detroit News last week.

Nessel's threat came as some of those who were initially sued and got the litigation thrown out as meritless seek their own sanctions or reimbursements.

For instance, Robert Davis, a Wayne County voter, and his attorney, Andrew Paterson, filed a request last week in U.S. District Court in Detroit for sanctions against the lawyers who represented six Michigan Republicans in asking a judge to require that President Donald Trump be named the state's winner.

The filing asks the court to penalize "the egregious conduct of the plaintiffs and their attorneys for making clearly frivolous arguments and using the judicial system to obtain unprecedented relief, to satisfy plaintiffs’ selfish and destructive political agendas."

Trump tweeted Saturday that he considers the lawyers who filed the lawsuits "true patriots" and urged them to "fight on!"