Savannah Surety Associates, Inc. v. Master

Hill, Justice.

Plaintiff filed a two-count, $2,000,000 damage suit against the defendants alleging that the defendants slandered plaintiff by charging him with criminal conduct and that they wrongfully ousted him as president of the defendant corporation. In their answers the defendants asserted, among others, truth as a defense to the slander count and a counterclaim for sums allegedly due to the corporation.

On notice, the defendants sought to take the plaintiffs oral deposition but plaintiff refused to answer, on grounds of possible self-incrimination, each of the following questions: How…