recognizing qualified privilege applies to statements regarding employees discharge, because of public interest that reasons be available to both discharged employee and prospective employers; without privilege, employers may not inform employees of reasons for discharge
How later courts described this case
- recognizing qualified privilege applies to statements regarding employees discharge, because of public interest that reasons be available to both discharged employee and prospective employers; without privilege, employers may not inform employees of reasons for discharge
- recognizing that doctrine applies in defamation action following separation of employment and person making defamatory statement knows that “the defamed person has no reasonable means of avoiding publication of the statement”
- “Requiring that truth as a defense go to the underlying implication of the statement, at least where the statement involves more than a simple allegation, appears to be the better view.”
- holding that liability exists only where “defamed person has no reasonable means of avoiding publication of the statement or avoiding the resulting damages”
Written by the judges who cited it.
The opinion
COYNE, Justice
(dissenting in part and concurring in part).
I join in Justice Simonett’s opinion dissenting in part and concurring in part.