RR&M Receives Victory in the Supreme Court

News

On June 26, 2019, Ratwik, Roszak & Maloney attorneys Margaret Skelton, Tim Sullivan, Christian Shafer and Frank Langan obtained a dismissal of all claims, including defamation and negligence, against their client Someplace Safe, a non-profit crime victim advocacy organization that published statements related to one of its clients.  The RR&M team argued that victims of domestic violence often do not have police records, witnesses or photographs that verify their abuse.  The Court agreed and determined that Someplace Safe acted as any reasonable, non-profit victims’ advocacy group would act by referring to its client as a “survivor” and by publishing a client’s statements about her personal experiences.  Further, the Court found that Someplace Safe had no reason to question the accuracy of its client’s accounting of her history of suffering domestic abuse.  The Court also found that a private plaintiff may not recover damages for defamatory statements involving a matter of public concern unless the plaintiff can establish actual malice.  Articles regarding this case can be found at: http://m.startribune.com/minnesota-supreme-court-ruling-protects-nonprofits-helping-domestic-violence-victims-in-libel-cases/511849842/ and https://apnews.com/111c5a35e6834140be722796640968bd.