Blair v. Walker

Plaintiffs, Allan Blair and David Gray, brought an action for defamation against defendant, Daniel Walker, the Governor of the State of Illinois. The allegedly libelous statements were contained in two press releases. The Governor moved to dismiss the complaint on the ground that he was protected by an absolute privilege when publishing the statements in question. The trial court denied the motion, holding that the Governor had only a conditional privilege. The case was certified for immediate appeal under our Rule 308 (58 Ill.2d R. 308), and was transferred to this court under Rule 302(b)…