Tuesday, October 8, 2019 - Las Vegas - Full Court

Stark vs. Lackey C/W 74461.
Docket Number: 74449
Las Vegas - 10:30 a.m. - Full Court

These are consolidated appeals that arise out of complaints related to two Facebook pages that are administered by Mark E. Smith (Lake Tahoe Wall of Shame), and Carolyn Stark (NDOW Watch), respectively, that criticize the Nevada Department of Wildlife’s handling of Nevada’s black bear population.  Respondent Carl Lackey, a biologist employed by the Nevada Department of Wildlife, contends that both Smith and Stark made and encouraged statements that defamed him, harmed his reputation, and threatened him and his family.  Lackey filed complaints against Smith and Stark alleging claims for defamation, negligent infliction of emotional distress (which the district court dismissed), intentional infliction of emotional distress, and civil conspiracy.  Smith and Stark both filed special motions to dismiss, which the district court denied.  On appeal, both Smith and Stark contend that the district court erred when it denied the special motions to dismiss because neither one made any of the statements at issue here—instead, third parties made the statements.  In addition, both Smith and Stark argue that the statements were all made about matters of public concern, were opinion, and were hyperbole--all protected under the First Amendment.

ISSUES:

On appeal, we consider whether the district court: (1) erred when it concluded that appellants failed to demonstrate, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the statements Lackey claims are defamatory were made in good faith in furtherance of the right to free speech in direct connection with an issue of public concern; (2)  abused its discretion when it failed to dismiss Lackey’s claims for civil conspiracy because those claims were not pleaded with the required particularity; (3) erred when it denied Smith and Stark’s respective motions to dismiss Lackey’s intentional infliction of emotional distress claims because Lackey failed to allege any acts carried out by Smith or Stark themselves, much less any acts that rise to the level of intentional and outrageous conduct.

Disclaimer:

This synopsis is intended to provide only general information about this case before the Nevada Supreme Court.  It is not intended to be all-inclusive or reflect all positions of the parties.  To access the documents that have been filed in this matter, type the docket number into the court’s case search page: https://caseinfo.nvsupremecourt.us/public/caseSearch.do