Opinion ID: 752986
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Defamation per quod

Text: 27 The district court dismissed Count IV of the amended complaint--alleging defamation per quod from the same statements involved in the defamation per se claim--on the ground that the statements were expressions of opinion and therefore entitled to absolute privilege. Although it is certainly correct that the Ohio constitution affords an absolute privilege to expressions of opinion, see Ohio Const. § 11, art. I; Vail v. The Plain Dealer Publ'g Co., 72 Ohio St.3d 279, 649 N.E.2d 182, 183 (1995), certiorari denied, 516 U.S. 1043, 116 S.Ct. 700, 133 L.Ed.2d 657, the conclusion that the privilege applied to the allegedly defamatory statements in this case required the district court to resolve factual issues that should not be reached on a motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6). 28 The Ohio Supreme Court has held that a court assessing whether speech is protected opinion must consider the totality of the circumstances. Vail, 649 N.E.2d at 183. More specifically, the court should examine the specific language at issue, whether the statement is verifiable, the general context of the statement, and the broader context in which the statement appeared. Id. (citing Scott v. News-Herald, 25 Ohio St.3d 243, 496 N.E.2d 699 (1986)); see also Ohio Savings Ass'n v. Business First of Columbus, Inc., 43 Ohio App.3d 215, 540 N.E.2d 320, 324 (1988). Bearing these factors in mind, it is not possible to say as a matter of law that Cook could prove no set of facts consistent with the amended complaint that would remove the alleged statements from the realm of protected opinion. In addition, Cook points to one Ohio opinion that observes that the statement In my opinion Jones is a liar is really a factual assertion masked as opinion, and is therefore not privileged. North Coast Cable Ltd. Partnership v. Hanneman, 98 Ohio App.3d 434, 648 N.E.2d 875, 879-80 (1994). This is enough to reinforce the point that determining whether or not Winfrey's alleged statements were, in all the circumstances, opinions or assertions of fact requires an inquiry that goes beyond the allegations of the complaint into a consideration of the context in which the statements were uttered. It was therefore error for the district court to grant Winfrey's motion to dismiss with regard to Count IV, and we reverse. 29