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Arbitration – SLAPP
Where plaintiffs have filed a complaint against a defendant who commenced an arbitration proceeding against them, a claim for breach of fiduciary duty (Count I) should be dismissed pursuant to the anti-SLAPP statute because the plaintiff was engaged in petitioning activity when she started the underlying arbitration.
SJC clarifies anti-SLAPP analysis once burden shifts in abuse of process claims
The Supreme Judicial Court’s decision in 'Allegaert v. Harbor View Hotel Owner LLC' clarifies the demanding burden on the non-moving party under the anti-SLAPP statute once the burden shifts.
Tort – SLAPP – Social media
Where a plaintiff has brought suit over online statements that the defendants posted on social media pages, the defendants’ special motion to dismiss pursuant to the Massachusetts anti-SLAPP statute should be denied because they have not met their burden of showing that the plaintiff’s claims are based solely on their legitimate petitioning activities.
Civil practice – SLAPP – Reconsideration
Where a plaintiff’s request for dismissal of a counterclaim pursuant to the Massachusetts anti-SLAPP statute was denied, her motion for reconsideration of that ruling should be denied because there is no justification for the plaintiff’s unreasonable delay in filing her motion.
Lawyers applaud SJC ruling for protecting low-wage-earners
In brief SJC rules it was an abuse of discretion to reduce anti-SLAPP attorneys’ fees. Case involved Wage Act claims and employer counterclaims for abuse of process. Court emphasizes fee […]
Civil practice – SLAPP – Abuse of process
Where a plaintiff filed a special motion under the anti-SLAPP statute to dismiss an abuse of process counterclaim, that motion should have been allowed because the defendant has not demonstrated that the underlying lawsuit is devoid of any reasonable factual support or arguable legal basis.
Attorneys – Fees – SLAPP
Where (1) a plaintiff sued his employer for violations of the Wage Act, (2) the employer’s counterclaims for abuse of process and malicious prosecution were dismissed pursuant to the anti-SLAPP statute, (3) the plaintiff thereafter sought appellate counsel fees and costs for the anti-SLAPP work, and (4) an Appeals Court panel halved the fee award because it concluded the award was disproportiona[...]
SJC offers clarification of SLAPP framework
An abuse of process counterclaim should have been dismissed because the defendant did not meet its burden to establish, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the plaintiff’s lawsuit was devoid of any reasonable factual support or any arguable basis in law, the Supreme Judicial Court has ruled.
Fee reduction under SLAPP reversed on appeal
The Supreme Judicial Court has reversed a decision to reduce an appellate counsel fee request by an employee who brought suit under the Wage Act and successfully moved under the anti-SLAPP statute to dismiss the employer’s counterclaims for abuse of process and malicious prosecution.
$20M verdict may not end marathon developer battle
A Suffolk County jury awarded $5.8M in 477 Harrison Ave. v. JACE Boston, a Massachusetts abuse-of-process case raising First Amendment issues.
Tort – SLAPP – Criminal complaints
Where claims for malicious prosecution and abuse of process have been brought against a defendant who filed two criminal complaints against the plaintiffs, the defendant’s special motion to dismiss pursuant to the Massachusetts anti-SLAPP statute (G L.c. 231, §59H) should be allowed in part and denied in part, as one of the two criminal complaints lacked any reasonable factual support or arguab[...]
Tort – SLAPP
Where the defendant parents of a fourth-grade public school student wrote a letter asking the school to address allegedly disruptive classroom behavior by a specific, but unnamed, student in their son's class, the dismissal of a subsequent complaint filed against the defendants should be affirmed under the anti-SLAPP statute (G.L.c. 231, §59H) because (1) the claims against them are based on thei[...]
Verdicts & Settlements
- Injury during baby’s adenoidectomy leads to stroke
- Construction worker’s hand caught in cement mixer
- Worker trapped in freezer, dies during steam cleaning
- Pedestrian, 69, hit by motor vehicle while in crosswalk
- Four-vehicle pileup leaves driver with spinal cord injury
- Nursing home staff blamed for kidney-failure death
- Pharmacy’s late delivery blamed for patient’s death
- Man, 25, drowns after swimming lesson at fitness club
Opinion Digests
- Jurisdiction – Forum selection clause – Non-signatory
- Criminal – Responsibility
- Attorneys – Lien
- Landlord and tenant – Default judgment
- Zoning – Constructive grant – Comprehensive permit
- Fraud – False Claims Act – Settlement share
- Civil practice – Discovery – Cybersecurity
