C
alifornia Governor Jerry Brown has signed Assembly Bill 2770 (Assembly Member Irwin; D-Thousand Oaks), an act to amend Section 47 of the Civil Code. The bill should protect both sexual harassment victims and employers against defamation claims from alleged harassers.
The bill was sponsored by the California Chamber of Commerce and passed the Legislature with unanimous, bipartisan support—presumably in recognition that victims and employers
ZL Technologies, Inc. v. Does 1-7, 13 Cal. App. 5th 603 (2017)
ZL Technologies brought suit, alleging libel per se and online impersonation, against seven anonymous individuals who represented themselves as current or former ZL employees and who posted critical reviews of ZL’s management and work environment on Glassdoor (a website where workers can post “reviews” of their employers). ZL served a subpoena on
Charney v. Standard General, LP, 10 Cal. App. 5th 149 (2017)
Dov Charney, the former president and CEO of American Apparel, Inc., was terminated following an investigation into allegations that he had engaged in various types of misconduct. Following Charney’s departure, Standard General effectively took over American Apparel through its control of company stock and the Board. After Charney’s employment was terminated, Standard General
ViaView, Inc. v. Retzlaff, 2016 WL 3626708 (Cal. Ct. App. 2016)
ViaView filed a petition for a workplace violence restraining order against Thomas Retzlaff, a resident of Texas, who had filed a motion to quash the petition for lack of personal jurisdiction. The trial court denied the motion to quash and granted a permanent injunction against Retzlaff. The Court of Appeal issued a peremptory
Stenehjem v. Sareen, 2014 WL 2646729 (Cal. Ct. App. 2014)
Jerome Stenehjem sued his former employer and its president and CEO, Surya Sareen, for defamation, among other things. In response, Sareen filed a cross-complaint for civil extortion, alleging, among other things, that while representing himself, Stenehjem made a written threat by email to file a false criminal complaint against Sareen unless he paid Stenehjem
McGrory v. Applied Signal Tech., 212 Cal. App. 4th 1510 (2013)
John McGrory alleged his employment was terminated because he is male and because he participated in his employer’s internal investigation. He also alleged defamation associated with a statement the vice president of human resources made to another employee about why McGrory had been terminated. The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of the
Aber v. Comstock, 212 Cal. App. 4th 931 (2013)
Lisa Aber sued her employer and two co-employees (Michael Comstock, Aber’s supervisor, and James Cioppa) for sexual harassment and sexual battery, among other things. Comstock filed a cross-complaint against Aber in which he alleged defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress. In response to Comstock’s cross-complaint, Aber filed a special motion to strike under Code of
Aber v. Comstock, 2012 WL 6863235 (Cal. Ct. App. Dec. 18, 2012)
Plaintiff Lisa Aber sued her employer and two of its employees, alleging that the employees had sexually assaulted her. Michael Comstock, one of the employee defendants, filed a cross-complaint against Aber, alleging claims for defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Comstock alleged that Aber published false statements about him to four
Fuentes v. AutoZone, Inc., 200 Cal. App. 4th 1221 (2011)
Marcela Fuentes worked as a part-time customer service representative (cashier) for AutoZone. Fuentes alleged that two managers (Melvin Garcia and Gonzalo Carrillo) had spread rumors that Fuentes had sexually transmitted herpes; that she and a coworker were engaged in a sexual relationship; and that she could make more money working as a stripper. On
Price v. Operating Eng’rs Local Union No. 3, 195 Cal. App. 4th 962 (2011)
During the course of a strike, members of the union placed copies of a flyer on the doors and cars of the neighbors of the employer’s vice president and general manager Jim Price that said: “Neighbors, beware of this man: Jim Price”; “protect your family, safeguard your property”; and “complain