No libel judgment, however extreme, had ever been held to violate the Constitution.
Until April 4 the highest libel judgment ultimately confirmed by the courts was well below $1 million.
On June 28, 1962, the jury awarded him the largest libel judgment in history to that date - $3.5 million.
Butts would win a $3,000,000 libel judgment against the Post on August 20.
He subsequently used the false story to win a libel judgment for $780,000 from a newspaper that reported the tryst.
Hunt won a libel judgment against the magazine in 1981, but this verdict was overturned on appeal.
In 1799 Rush won a $5,000 libel judgment against Cobbett.
To win a libel judgment, public figures, like members of Congress, must prove that a statement was made with "actual malice."
Last week, he won a $5.5 million libel judgment.
At the time, it was the largest libel judgment ever.