Gawker Denied Motion for New Trial in Hulk Hogan Leaked Sex Tape Case

A judge in Florida denied Gawker Media's motion for a new trial in Hulk Hogan's lawsuit against the company, per the Associated Press.  

The judge also declined to reduce the $140 million in damages awarded to the former professional wrestler.

Hogan filed suit after Gawker posted an excerpt from his sex tape in 2012 without his permission. Following a nearly six-hour deliberation, the jury sided with Hogan and initially awarded him $115 million on March 18. Three days later, the jury added another $25 million in punitive damages. Gawker filed its appeal on April 5.

On Tuesday, Forbes' Ryan Mac and Matt Drange reported that Peter Thiel, a co-founder of PayPal and a member of Facebook's board of directors, was providing the funding for Hogan's defense. Mac and Drange noted Gawker and its subsidiary sites had written critical articles about Thiel in the past.

CNN's Tom Kludt reported Tuesday that Gawker plans on taking the case to the Second District Court of Appeals in Florida to try to overturn the jury's verdict.

"The notion that Hulk Hogan is owed $140 million for snippets from a sex tape made by his best friend—after he's made his sex life an open book—is patently absurd to everyone other than his lawyers who want a pay day," the company said in a statement. "As we've said all along, we expect the appeals court will rule in our favor."