Court Opinion

ID: 9748241
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-27 15:57:23.585454+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:25:33.446422
License: Public Domain

CUNNINGHAM, J.,
Concurring in Result Only:
“Who steals my purse steals trash; ‘tis something, nothing. ‘Twas mine, ‘tis his, and has been a slave to thousands. But he that filches from me my good name robs me of that which not enriches him, and makes me poor indeed.”
It is precisely for this reason, so cogently expressed by Shakespeare, that our law does not protect defamation of character. John Burness and Petrotech were in the process of being defamed and maligned. They have resorted to the protection of the court — not the vindication of the street — to protect their good names.
Therefore, while I concur with the excellent writing and rationale of Justice Ven-ters, I wish to make clear that, in my view, the courts are still able to protect one from perpetual vilification.
I write to express my concern about the term, “final adjudication,” used by the majority. It would have been sufficient, in my opinion, if the trial court, in this case, had conducted a full blown hearing and had entered findings on the falsity of the statements, even though other claims might still be pending. To that extent, there would not have been a “final adjudication” of the case, but there would have been one on the falsity of the statements. To my mind, that would have been sufficient “adjudication” to have protected the constitutional rights of the declarant as well as the reputation of the person aggrieved. Such was not done here and, thus, I concur in result.
I am heartened by the words of Justice Venters that “upon a final adjudication of the falsity of any statements made by Hill, a narrowly tailored injunction may be issued. ...” It is my opinion that a temporary injunction may still be obtained if the trial judge holds a hearing and makes a finding that the statements are, in fact, false. This would allow a temporary injunction to be in place to protect the reputation of the complainant as the lawsuit proceeds to a conclusion.
With the expression of this view, I concur in result only.