Opinion ID: 2629508
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Nevada's anti-SLAPP statute

Text: A SLAPP lawsuit is characterized as `a meritless suit filed primarily to chill the defendant's exercise of First Amendment rights.' Dickens v. Provident Life and Acc. Ins. Co., 117 Cal.App.4th 705, 11 Cal.Rptr.3d 877, 882 (2004) (quoting Wilcox v. Superior Court (Peters), 27 Cal.App.4th 809, 33 Cal. Rptr.2d 446, 449 n. 2 (1994), abrogated on other grounds by Equilon Enterprises v. Consumer Cause, Inc., 29 Cal.4th 53, 124 Cal.Rptr.2d 507, 52 P.3d 685, 694 n. 5 (2002)). The hallmark of a SLAPP lawsuit is that it is filed to obtain a financial advantage over one's adversary by increasing litigation costs until the adversary's case is weakened or abandoned. U.S. Ex Rel. Newsham v. Lockheed Missiles, 190 F.3d 963, 970 (9th Cir. 1999). For instance, the California Court of Appeal in Dickens affirmed a trial court's grant of an anti-SLAPP motion striking a malicious prosecution count from a complaint. 11 Cal.Rptr.3d at 877-78. The Dickens case arose when the plaintiff sued an insurance company and an insurance investigator alleging they initiated an improper prosecution of the plaintiff by the federal government for insurance fraud. Id. at 878. When affirming the district court's order, the court reasoned that the defendants' communications in preparation for a government investigation were in furtherance of their constitutional rights to free speech, and therefore, they were entitled to the benefits of California's anti-SLAPP statute. Id. at 883, 885. Nevada's anti-SLAPP statute was enacted in 1993, shortly after California adopted its statute, and both statutes are similar in purpose and language. See NRS 41.660; Cal. Civ.Proc.Code § 425.16 (West 2004 & Supp. 2009). NRS 41.660 defines the type of lawsuits subject to anti-SLAPP motions in Nevada. It says that when a plaintiff brings an action against a person based upon a good faith communication in furtherance of the right to petition, the defendant may bring a special motion to dismiss within 60 days of service of the complaint. NRS 41.660(1)-(2). When amending Nevada's anti-SLAPP statute in 1997, the Legislature explained that SLAPP lawsuits abuse the judicial process by chilling, intimidating, and punishing individuals for their involvement in public affairs. 1997 Nev. Stat., ch. 387, preamble, at 1364. The Legislature further reasoned that the number of SLAPP lawsuits in Nevada had increased, and therefore, implementation of an anti-SLAPP statute was essential to protect citizens' constitutional rights. Id. Further, the purpose of Nevada's anti-SLAPP statute is similar to the purpose behind the Noerr-Pennington immunity doctrine. See Eastern R. Conf. v. Noerr Motor, 365 U.S. 127, 81 S.Ct. 523, 5 L.Ed.2d 464 (1961); United Mine Workers v. Pennington, 381 U.S. 657, 85 S.Ct. 1585, 14 L.Ed.2d 626 (1965). According to this doctrine, those who petition all departments of the government for redress are generally immune from liability. Empress LLC v. City and County, 419 F.3d 1052, 1056 (9th Cir.2005). The basis of this doctrine is that representative democracy demands that citizens and public officials have the ability to openly engage in discussions of public concern. Manistee Town Center v. City of Glendale, 227 F.3d 1090, 1093 (9th Cir.2000). As a result, the private or public petitioning of governmental entities is insufficient to violate federal substantive rights. Id. In addition, Noerr-Pennington immunity does not apply to sham cases where a person abuses the government process in order to achieve some benefit. Boulware v. State of Nev., Dept. of Human Res., 960 F.2d 793, 797 (9th Cir.1992). Similarly, Nevada's anti-SLAPP statute is predicated on protecting well-meaning citizens who petition [the] government and then find themselves hit with retaliatory suits known as SLAPP[] [suits]. Comments by State Senator on S.B. 405 Before the Senate, 67th Leg. (Nev., June 17, 1993). More importantly, the anti-SLAPP statute only protects citizens who petition the government from civil liability arising from good-faith communications to a government agency. NRS 41.637. Thus, Nevada's anti-SLAPP statute is not an absolute bar against federal substantive claims; rather, it bars claims from persons who seek to abuse other citizens' rights to petition their government, and it allows meritorious claims against citizens who do not petition the government in good faith.