Slander Per Se Complaint Not Based Upon “Serious Crime” (Trespass) ​

In affirming the dismissal of a complaint alleging slander per se based upon the accusation defendant had committed trespass, the Third Department explained:

A statement will fall into one of the four categories of slander per se when  it is so noxious and injurious by nature that the law presumes that pecuniary damages will result and, thus, special damages need not be alleged ….  As relevant here, “slander per se” includes “statements . . . charging [a] plaintiff with a serious crime,” but “the law distinguishes between  serious and  relatively minor offenses, and  only statements regarding the former are actionable without proof of damage” … .  * * *

In any event, even construing the complaint liberally and according plaintiff the benefit of every favorable inference, it does not set forth the allegedly defamatory statement with sufficient particularity to satisfy the requirement of CPLR  3016… .  Martin v Hayes, 515024, 3rd Dept, 4-25-13