Rappaport v. VV Publishing Corp.
Court: Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York; January 29, 1996; New York; State Appellate Court
The Supreme Court of New York County, under Justice Carol H. Arber, issued an order on October 31, 1994, affirming the dismissal of a defamation complaint against the defendants. The court determined that the statements in the newspaper articles about the plaintiff, a Supreme Court Justice in Kings County, were not actionable as they did not reasonably imply improper conduct regarding the assignment of cases involving police misconduct. The articles criticized a system purportedly assigning cases randomly, rather than implicating the plaintiff personally. Statements suggesting the plaintiff's bias towards police officers due to his previous work with the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association (PBA) and his leniency in sentencing were deemed opinions rather than provable facts. These opinions were constitutionally protected, as they were based on the fact that the plaintiff had been a PBA lawyer. The analysis of the articles indicated that the authors' views were not universally shared, with the District Attorney quoted as defending the plaintiff against claims of prejudice. The court also dismissed the plaintiff's argument that omitted facts rendered the statements actionable, deeming this contention meritless. The IAS Court's refusal to allow the plaintiff to amend the complaint was upheld, as the statements in question were not actionable as a matter of law, making any repleading futile. Judges Sullivan, Wallach, Ross, and Williams concurred with the decision.