Walter Block v. New York Times Company

Plaintiff-appellant Walter Block appeals the dismissal of his defamation and false light claims against the New York Times and two of its authors. The district court dismissed his claims under Louisiana’s anti-SLAPP statute, Article 971, finding that Block failed to create a genuine issue of fact as to falsity, fault, and defamatory meaning, which are essential elements of his claims. Block appeals, arguing that the district court erred by applying Article 971 and by determining under Article 971 that he failed to create a fact issue as to each of the elements of his claims. Because Block has…