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A DEFAMATION COMPLAINT DISMISSED FOR FAILURE TO STATE A CAUSE OF ACTION LACKS A “SUBSTANTIAL BASIS IN LAW” WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE ANTI-SLAPP LAW (FIRST DEPT). ​

The First Department, in a full-fledged opinion by Justice Gonzalez, over a two-justice concurrence, determined the defendants were entitled to attorney’s fees pursuant to the anti-SLAPP law (see Civil Rights Law §§ 70-a, 76-a; CPLR 3211[g]-[h]). The plaintiffs sued defendant newspaper (The Daily Mail) alleging defamation and several related causes of action. Supreme Court dismissed the complaint for failure to state a cause of action. The defendants argued they were entitled to attorney’s fees pursuant to the anti-SLAPP law because the action did not have a “substantial basis in law.” The question on appeal was whether a complaint which was dismissed for failure to state a cause of action could still be said to have a “substantial basis in law” such that the defendants would not be able to recover their attorney’s fees.  The First Department answered “no:”

… [T]he “substantial basis” standard applicable under CPLR 3211(g) is more exacting than the liberal pleading standard applicable to ordinary CPLR 3211(a)(7) motions. Under the CPLR 3211(a)(7) standard, the question is whether a cognizable cause of action is manifested, presuming the complaint’s factual allegations to be true, and according the pleading the benefit of every possible favorable inference … . By contrast, a court reviewing the sufficiency of a pleading under CPLR 3211(g) must look beyond the face of the pleadings to determine whether the claim alleged is supported by substantial evidence … .

… [A] complaint which fails to state a claim under CPLR 3211(a)(7) necessarily lacks a “substantial basis in law” for purposes of CPLR 3211(g) … . * * *

… [Plaintiffs’] failure to meet the CPLR 3211(a) standard necessarily establishes their failure to meet the higher CPLR 3211(g) standard. Karl Reeves, C.E.I.N.Y. Corp. v Associated Newspapers, Ltd., 2024 NY Slip Op 01898, First Dept 4-9-24

Practice Point: A complaint which does not state a cause of action lacks a “substantial basis in law” within the meaning of the anti-SLAPP law. Therefore the defendants here were entitled to recover their attorney’s fees.

 

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