Lee v. Brooklyn Union Publishing Co.
New York Court of Appeals
Appeal from a judgment of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court in the second judicial department, entered June 13, 1912, affirming a judgment in favor of defendant entered upon a verdict in an action for libel. On the 31st of July, 1909, the defendant published in its newspaper an article purporting to be an account of a proceeding in one of the Magistrates’ Courts in the borough of Brooklyn.
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Appeal from a judgment of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court in the second judicial department, entered June 13, 1912, affirming a judgment in favor of defendant entered upon a verdict in an action for libel. On the 31st of July, 1909, the defendant published in its newspaper an article purporting to be an account of a proceeding in one of the Magistrates’ Courts in the borough of Brooklyn. A portion of that article is complained of as libelous, to wit: “ Lawyer Perry didn’t confine his comments to the case in hand, that of the pastor’s sudden draft on the church’s available funds,…
1Opinion of the CourtMiller, J.
The rule is not questioned that a full, fair and impartial report of a judicial proceeding is qualifiedly privileged. That was the rule at common law and the statutes of this state so provide. (Laws of 1854, chap. 130; Code Civil Procedure, § 1907.) It is asserted, however, that there was no warrant in law in 1909 for the issuance of a magistrate’s summons; that the magistrate had no jurisdiction of the plaintiff; that the charge made against him was not supported hy an oath, and that the proceeding was not judicial.
It is to be observed that this is not a case of absolute privilege, which…
2Cited by33 opinions
- Hearst Corp. v. ClyneNew York Court of Appeals · 1980
- Williams v. WilliamsNew York Court of Appeals · 1969
- Westchester Rockland Newspapers, Inc. v. LeggettNew York Court of Appeals · 1979
- MATTER OF UNITED PRESS ASSNS. v. ValenteNew York Court of Appeals · 1954
- Stevenson v. News Syndicate Co.New York Court of Appeals · 1950
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