World Fin. Group, Inc. v. HBW Ins. & Fin. Services, Inc., 172 Cal. App. 4th 1561 (2009)

WFG filed a complaint against its direct competitor, HBW, and six of its agents for alleged breach of contract, misappropriation of trade secrets, conversion, unfair competition, interference with prospective economic advantage and unjust enrichment. In response, HBW filed a motion to dismiss the complaint as a SLAPP

Dible v. Haight Ashbury Free Clinics, Inc., 170 Cal. App. 4th 843 (2009)

Leah Dible, who was employed by the Haight Ashbury Free Clinics as a psychiatric counselor, was terminated after a jail inmate as to whom she had some level of responsibility committed suicide. Dible alleged that when she was terminated, she was told that her negligence had resulted in the inmate’s suicide

Nygård, Inc. v. Uusi-Kerttula, 159 Cal. App. 4th 1027 (2008)

After quitting his employment with Nygård, Timo Uusi-Kerttula gave an interview about his work experiences to a Finnish magazine. Nygård then sued Timo and the magazine for a variety of claims, including breach of contract and defamation. The trial court granted defendants’ motion to strike pursuant to the anti-SLAPP statute, Cal. Code Civ. Proc.

McGarry v. University of San Diego, 154 Cal. App. 4th 97 (2007)

Following the termination of Kevin McGarry’s employment as head coach of USD’s football team, two university officials allegedly commented to the San Diego Union Tribune newspaper about the reasons for the termination. In response to these statements, McGarry sued the university and the officials for defamation. Defendants responded with successful motions to

Christian Research Inst. v. Alnor, 2007 WL 602954 (Cal. Ct. App. Feb. 28, 2007)

William Alnor, a former employee of the Christian Research Institute (CRI), maintains a website that reports on the fundraising and spending practices of various Christian organizations. Suspicious of CRI’s claims that it had lost a substantial amount of money as a result of the misdirection of certain of its mail

Soukup v. Law Offices of Herbert Hafif, 39 Cal. 4th 260 (2006)

Peggy Soukup, a former employee of the Law Offices of Herbert Hafif, sued Ronald C. Stock for abuse of process and malicious prosecution based upon Stock’s prosecution of an earlier lawsuit against Soukup on behalf of the Hafifs and their law firm. The underlying lawsuit, which involved Soukup’s alleged disclosure to a

Greka Integrated, Inc. v. Lowrey, 133 Cal. App. 4th 1572 (2005)

Greka Integrated sued its former safety manager, Gary Lowrey, for breach of a non-disclosure agreement and conversion associated with Lowrey’s taking emails and other documents that belonged to the company and for disclosing those documents to third parties, including Greka’s competitors. Lowrey contended that he discovered many violations of worker safety and environmental

Leegin Creative Leather Prods., Inc. v. Diaz, 131 Cal. App. 4th 1517 (2005)

Leegin Creative Leather Products, Inc. filed a civil fraud complaint against one of its employees after it learned that the employee had filed a false workers’ compensation claim against the company. Leegin alleged that it had been damaged by the filing of the false claim because its insurance premiums and reserves

Fontani v. Wells Fargo Investments, LLC, 129 Cal. App. 4th 719 (2005)

Wells Fargo terminated Marco Fontani, one of its NASDregistered broker-dealers. Following Fontani’s termination, Wells Fargo filed a Form U-5 with the NASD, stating that Fontani had been terminated “for violation of company policies by misrepresenting information in the sale of annuities, not being properly registered and firm procedures regarding annuity applications.” Fontani

Soukup v. Stock, 118 Cal. App. 4th 1490, 15 Cal. Rptr. 3d 303 (2004)

Peggy Soukup, a former employee of the Law Offices of Herbert Hafif, sued Ronald C. Stock for abuse of process and malicious prosecution based upon Stock’s prosecution of an earlier lawsuit against Soukup on behalf of the Hafifs and their law firm. The underlying lawsuit, which involved Soukup’s alleged disclosure