Online Rankings and Opinion
Recent Cases Explore Fact-Opinion Distinction for Content Curators By Amaris Elliott-Engel In a brimming information society and an era of “listicles,” curators of content, including online ratings sites, play an important role in informing the public. They also have been the targets of pushback in court. Recent cases show how courts continue to grapple with…
Court Throws Out Hundreds of Copyright Infringement Claims Against Textbook Publisher
By Mara J. Gassmann Judge Katherine Polk Failla of the Southern District of New York granted summary judgment to John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (“Wiley”) with respect to nearly all of the 316 instances of copyright infringement alleged by stock photography provider DRK Photo (“DRK”). John Wiley & Sons, Inc. v. DRK Photo, No. 11cv5454…
Ninth Circuit Navigates Purple Haze Shrouding Damages Award in Hendrix Trademark Suit
Rejects Reduction of Jury’s Award But Remands for New Damages Trial By Hajir Ardebili In a trademark dispute over the commercial use of legendary guitarist Jimi Hendrix’s name, image, and likeness, the district court and the Ninth Circuit agreed there was a dearth of evidence to support the jury’s damages award for the plaintiffs. Although…
European Court of Justice Rules on Hyperlinks and Copyright Liability
How Does Decision Compare to US and Canadian Approaches? By Paul Joseph and Adam Cusworth The European Court of Justice this month issued an important decision on copyright liability for hyperlinking to online content. See Svensson v. Retriever Sverige AB (Feb. 13, 2014). Background Svensson and a number of other journalists wrote press articles that…
Court Orders Nassau County Police Department to Release Documents Pursuant to FOIA Law
Court Grants Newsday’s Petition and Awards Attorneys’ Fees and Costs By Alia L. Smith On January 16, 2014, New York Supreme Court Justice Daniel Palmieri gave the Nassau County Police Department (“NCPD”) 30 days to turn over to Newsday documents the newspaper had been seeking for more than a year in four separate Freedom of…
Florida Court Upholds A Constitutional Right to Public Records in Criminal Court Proceedings
By Jennifer A. Mansfield In November, 2013, Morris Publishing Group LLC, d/b/a The Florida Times-Union (“The Florida Times-Union”), and Multimedia Holdings Corporation and Gannett River States Publishing Corporation, d/b/a WTLV/WJXX First Coast News (“First Coast News”) sought to intervene in the State’s prosecution of Michael Dunn. The case involved the murder trial of Dunn, a…
New Hampshire Reverses Blogger’s Conviction for Recording Calls to Police, School Officials
The New Hampshire Supreme Court reversed a blogger’s conviction for violating that state’s wiretapping law for recording without permission his calls to two school officials and a police official. New Hampshire v. Mueller, No. 2012-644 (N.H. Feb. 11, 2014). Background Blogger Adam Mueller, the founder of Copblock.org, was convicted of violating New Hampshire’s wiretapping law…
Climate Scientist’s Libel Suit Over Criticism Survives Motion to Dismiss
Column Could Reasonably Be Read to Accuse Plaintiff of Fraud A high profile libel suit filed by climate scientist Michael Mann against global warming skeptics survived a motion to dismiss. Mann v. National Review, No. 2012 CA 8263 B (D.C. Sup. Jan. 22, 2014). The D.C. Superior Court denied a motion to strike the complaint…
Teacher’s Libel Suit Over ‘Sexual Predator’ Label Dismissed
Arbitrator’s Disciplinary Ruling Not the Last Word on Truth In a case the presiding judge said never should have been brought, a teacher listed in a news article as one of a number of “sex predators” allowed to keep working in New York City schools was not defamed as a matter of law. Rosado v….
Third Circuit Affirms False Light Damage Award Over Medical Association Newsletter Court Rejects Defendant’s Claim That Verdict Was Inconsistent
The Third Circuit affirmed a $196,000 false light damage award in favor of a medical doctor over a report in the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons newsletter reporting on a grievance proceeding against the plaintiff. Graboff v. American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, No. 13-2229 (3d Cir. Feb. 20, 2014) (Jordan, Vanaskie, Greenberg, JJ.). In a…
Court Dismisses Dentist’s Defamation Case on Statute of Limitations and Truth Grounds
By Matthew L. Schafer In an order issued in January, a Denver District Court judge dismissed claims against KMGH-TV arising from the posting online of a news report discussing medical files found strewn about a local parking lot. See Order Granting Defendant Scripps Media Motion to Dismiss, Larscheid v. Scripps Media, Inc., No. 13-cv-33746 (Colo….
Defamation and Privacy Suit Over “Double Dipping” Doctor Headline Dismissed
Reports Were True; Subject Matter Not Private By Natalie Spears and Kristen Rodriguez The Circuit Court of Cook County recently granted a motion to dismiss a defamation, false light, tortious interference with business relationships, and publication of private facts complaint brought against the Chicago affiliate of NBC, The Chicago Sun-Times, and the Better Government Association…
Video Camera Operator Shown in Porn DVD Wins Right of Publicity Claim
But Damages Limited to $1,000 The Illinois Appellate Court ruled that a plaintiff, who filmed and edited porn DVDs, is entitled only to a statutory award of $1,000 because he did not establish that the profits earned from that adult material derived from the unauthorized use of his image. Doe v. Flava Works, Inc., No….
California Appeals Court Affirms Denial of Celebrity Website’s SLAPP Motion
Court Reinstates Publicity Claims The California Court of Appeal affirmed the denial of an anti-SLAPP motion made by celebrity website X17 seeking to strike defamation and privacy claims over videotaping Lindsey Lohan and plaintiff, Lohan’s sobriety coach. Dice v. X17, Inc., B243910 (Cal. App. Jan. 10, 2014) (unpublished). The court held there was sufficient evidence…
California Court Applies Anti-SLAPP Statute in Case Arising From Reader Comments
By Matthew L. Schafer In a published opinion, the California Court of Appeal for the Fourth District affirmed the striking, under the state’s anti-SLAPP statute, of a lawsuit against the Orange County Register that arose from a back-and-forth between two readers who posted comments to a Register article. Hupp v. Freedom Commc’ns, Inc., 221 Cal….
Oklahoma Appeals Court Affirms Dismissal of Libel in Fiction Claim
Plaintiff Can’t Draw Blood for Same Named Character in Vampire Novels In an apparent case of first impression in Oklahoma, an appellate court has affirmed dismissal of a “libel in fiction” claim. Bates v. Cast, No. 111739 (Okla. App. Dec. 5 2013). The court ruled that plaintiff did not have an actionable claim for defamation…
Seventh Circuit Reinstates Trademark and Publicity Claims Over Sports Illustrated Page
Supermarket’s Page Congratulating Michael Jordan Ruled Commercial Speech The Seventh Circuit this month held that a magazine page designed by a Chicago-area supermarket to commemorate Michael Jordan’s induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame was commercial speech and potentially actionable. Jordan v. Jewel Food Stores, Inc., No. 12-1992 (7th Cir. Feb. 19, 2014) (Flaum, Skyes,…
Supreme Court Upholds Defamation Immunity for Airlines That Report Potential Threats
By Jerrold J. Ganzfried In Air Wisconsin Airlines Corp. v. Hoeper, the Supreme Court upheld an airline’s immunity from defamation liability for reporting a potential security threat to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). Although the case arose in the context of statutory immunity under the Aviation and Transportation Security Act (ATSA), it has multiple significant…
9th Circuit Asks California SCT to Decide if State’s Disabled Persons Act Includes Websites as “Public Accommodations”
By Thomas R. Burke and Ronald G. London On February 5, 2014, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued an opinion and an associated order asking the California Supreme Court to decide whether the California Disabled Persons Act (DPA), which seeks to ensure equal access to places of public accommodation in the…
MediaLawLetter February 2014
Download Publication FIRST AMENDMENT 9th Cir.: Court Asks California SCt to Decide if State’s Disabled Persons Act Includes Websites as “Public Accommodations”Lower Court Viewed Captioning as Transcription that Does Not Implicate First AmendmentGreater Los Angeles Agency on Deafness v. CNN SUPREME COURT Supreme Court Upholds Defamation Immunity for Airlines That Report Potential ThreatsSignificant Implications for…