“SLAPP” is an acronym for “strategic lawsuit against public participation.” (Equilon Enterprises v. Consumer Cause, Inc. (2002) 29 Cal.4th 53, 57.) SLAPP suits are lawsuits that seek damages for making public statements and thus arguably designed to intimidate or silence parties. Like many states, California has an “anti-SLAPP statute” (Code of Civil Procedure §425.16) that allows a defendant to seek an early dismissal of a SLAPP suit. California’s anti-SLAPP statute states that “a cause of action against a person arising from any act of that person in furtherance of that person’s right of petition or free speech…shall be subject to a special motion to strike, unless the Court determines…there is a probability that the plaintiff would prevail on the claim.”
Continue ReadingSLAPP Happy: A String of Cases Addressing California’s Anti-SLAPP Statute
