Former NFL Punter to Sue the Vikings for Discrimination

On Tuesday July 15, former Minnesota Vikings punter, Chris Kluwe, stated he intends to sue his former team, claiming religious discrimination, sexual-orientation discrimination, defamation, and tortious interference with contractual relations for his release from the team in 2013.

Kluwe spoke out this past January in a Deadspin.com article about his unexpected release. The article posits his support of same-sex marriage and other social issues as being central to his dismissal from the Vikings and claims that special-teams coordinator Mike Priefer (who has since admitted to …

April 25, 2014 Defamation / Libel

‘What Masie Knew’ Screenwriter Facing Libel-in-Fiction Suit by Ex

The movie “What Maisie Knew” has been commonly understood as being an adaptation of Henry James’ 1897 novel that shares the same name. That work chronicled the bitter tale of a daughter caught between two parents in a custody battle between her biological parents. On April 18, 2014, actress/musician Ronee Sue Blakley sued Carroll Cartwright, the film’s co-writer, alleging that the recent film adaptation of the piece was actually a defamatory portrayal of the former couple’s contentious custody battle that lasted over ten years.

In …

February 26, 2014 Defamation

‘Wolf of Wall Street’ Studio Sued for Defamation

On February 18, Andrew Greene filed a $25 million defamation lawsuit against the filmmakers of the recent box office hit “The Wolf of Wall Street” and Paramount Pictures. Greene’s filing accuses the defendants of defaming him through their portrayal of the character Nicky “Rugrat” Koskoff, who Greene asserts was modeled after him. Greene’s suit states that “the motion picture contains various scenes wherein Mr. Greene’s character is portrayed as a criminal, drug user, degenerate, depraved and/or devoid of any morality.” Several scenes in the movie …

February 11, 2014 Libel

Hoffman Friend Sues ‘National Enquirer” for Libel

There has been plenty of controversy and media hype over the apparent heroin overdose that caused the death of actor Philip Seymour Hoffman. Now David Bar Katz, a playwright friend of Hoffman’s, is suing the publisher of the National Enquirer tabloid, American Media, Inc., for libel over a recent story in the magazine which stated that Hoffman and Bar Katz were gay lovers, and that Bar Katz had witnessed Hoffman doing drugs on several occasions, including the night before Hoffman’s untimely death.

Bar Katz’s lawsuit …

October 22, 2013 Defamation / Golf / Intellectual Property, Copyright, and Trademark / Libel / Privacy Rights / Rights

Tiger’s 2013 Grade: “C” for Cheater?

Chances are that Tiger Woods has never gotten an “F” on any test or examination in his life. After all, he’s won 79 PGA Tour events, is a 14-time major champion and, prior to turning professional, spent two years as an undergraduate at Stanford University, one of our nation’s most prestigious institutions. This is at least part of the reason that Brandel Chamblee’s 2013 season-in-review “report card”, published last week on Golf.com, in which he gave Woods a grade of “F” for the season, …

November 1, 2012 Uncategorized

Tom Cruise’s Defamation Suit Proves it’s Risky Business for Tabloids to Cover Suri

On October 24, 2012, Tom Cruise brought a defamation action against the publisher of Life & Style and In Touch Magazines in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. The suit claims that the defendants published headlines indicating that he had abandoned his daughter Suri after his divorce with Katie Holmes, and seeks $50 million in damages.

Some ‘at issue’ images included a picture captioned “Suri in tears, abandoned by her dad,” and featured a tearful photo of the young girl. The article …

October 19, 2012 NCAA

ANALYSIS: McQueary Files Whistleblower and Defamation Suit Against Penn State

Mike McQueary, a former assistant football coach at Penn State, has filed a $4 million whistleblower and defamation lawsuit against the school. The suit stems from Penn State’s alleged retaliation against McQueary after he testified against school officials during the child sex abuse scandal.

According to the McQueary Complaint filed in Pennsylvania state court, in 2010, McQueary testified before a grand jury that he saw Jerry Sandusky sexually abusing a child in the showers at Penn State in 2001. McQueary testified that he reported the …

September 26, 2012 Boxing / Litigation

Pacquiao v. Mayweather Lawsuit Update – Round 2

Just a week after being ordered by the Court to pay $114,000 in legal fees for failing to appear at a deposition, it appears that Floyd Mayweather, Jr. has reached a settlement with Manny Pacquiao. A pretrial agreement noted that the boxers are in the process of settling the defamation case brought by Pacquiao in December 2009. Pacquiao filed suit alleging that Mayweather accusing him of using performance-enhancing drugs.

The terms of the settlement are confidential. However, a statement released on behalf of the Mayweathers …

September 22, 2012 Boxing

Pacquiao Wins Round Against Mayweather in District Court

On September 19, 2012, U.S. District Judge Larry Hicks ordered Floyd Mayweather to pay $113,518.50 in attorneys’ fees and costs as a result of refusing to show up for a deposition in a suit filed against him by fellow boxer Manny Pacquiao. The underlying action is one for defamation – alleging that Mayweather told multiple parties, including reporters, that Pacquiao uses performance enhancing drugs.

Mayweather insisted that he missed the deposition last fall because he had been too busy training. However, investigators “obtained photos of …

September 14, 2012 TV

‘Pink Slime’ Manufacturer Fights Back at ABC with Defamation Suit

A manufacturer of beef trimmings launched a $1.2 billion defamation suit against the American Broadcasting Company, ABC reporters Jim Avila and David Kerly, Diane Sawyer and several others in the Circuit Court of South Dakota, First Judicial Circuit on September 13, 2012.

In its complaint, the manufacturer, Beef Products, Inc., alleges that ABC’s multi-part documentary attacked BPI’s lean finely textured beef product (the substance less affectionately dubbed “pink slime” by critics in the documentary) causing it to incur a loss of business since the series …