Carlson, Hannity, and Bartiromo are slated to testify at the defamation trial that Fox News is covering

Fox News has responded to a $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit brought by a former employee who claims the network lied about voter fraud in the 2020 U.S. presidential election by announcing that Maria Bartiromo, Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson, and other prominent on-air personalities will be available to testify.

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The hosts are among 11 people Fox expects to make available at trial in a case brought by Dominion Voting Systems, according to a letter the cable television network filed on Tuesday in Delaware Superior Court.

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Fox's witness list includes current broadcaster Jeanine Pirro and former anchor Lou Dobbs. Both parties might potentially summon hosts Bret Baier and Dana Perino to appear, the letter stated.

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On Fox's list of witnesses, Rupert Murdoch, the 92-year-old chairman of Fox's parent company Fox Corp (FOXA.O), is not listed.

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As a result of this list, a high-wattage parade of witnesses will be presented during what is expected to be a four-week jury trial starting on April 17.

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With the aim of proving Fox ruined its reputation, Dominion is trying to show that it rigged the 2020 election so that Democratic candidate Joe Biden could win, by airing false claims repeatedly by former Republican President Donald Trump, his lawyers, and others that their voting machines were used to do so.

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The Denver-based company alleges that emails, messages, and depositions demonstrate that Fox broadcast bogus election claims to increase earnings and prevent viewers from switching to the right-wing outlets Newsmax and OAN, which have also accepted Trump's claims, by airing them.

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The company must be able to show that Fox acted with actual malice, which means that Fox knowingly spread false information or that Fox acted recklessly disregarding the truth in order to prevail.

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Due to the inherently newsworthy nature of election fraud claims and the right of Fox hosts and guests to express their opinions, Fox considers its coverage to be protected under the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment.

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Nevertheless, Judge Eric Davis rejected much of Fox's defense on Friday and said that Dominion's case was strong enough to go to a jury and that Fox's defense was not adequate.

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"Based on the evidence gathered in this civil proceeding, it is eminently clear that none of the statements relating to Dominion regarding the 2020 election are true, as shown by this evidence," he wrote.

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A similar lawsuit filed against Fox by another voting technology company, Smartmatic, seeks $2.7 billion in damages from Fox for its involvement in the election process.