Pan Am Systems, Inc. v. Hardenbergh, No. 14-2118 (1st Cir. 2015)
Annotate this CasePlaintiffs - Springfield Terminal Railway Co., Pan Am Systems, Inc., and David Fink, the former President and CEO of Pan Am, the parental corporation of Springfield - sued Defendants - several media defendants - in diversity, alleging defamation. Specifically, Plaintiffs alleged that certain published articles discussing a train derailment on a Springfield-owned line contained false and defamatory statements. The trial judge granted Defendants’ motion for summary judgment, concluding that none of the offending statements were actionable in defamation. The First Circuit (1) reversed as to comments claiming that Springfield ‘loses’ cars on a consistent basis, as the comments were capable of defamatory readings and were provably false; and (2) otherwise affirmed, holding that summary judgment was properly granted on the remaining disputed passages in the offending articles.
The court issued a subsequent related opinion or order on November 4, 2015.
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