Monthly Archives: November 2017

Last month, the judge presiding over the Deripaska v. Associated Press case granted the Associated Press’ Rule 12(b)(6) motion and dismissed the case. The Associated Press had filed a companion special motion to dismiss under the DC anti-SLAPP statute. The federal court issued a separate opinion, denying that motion. The federal district court agreed that, when the DC Court of Appeals has “spoken clearly and unmistakably as to the current state of D.C. law,” a federal court should follow that decision (e.g., Mann), even if it appears to be in conflict with a prior decision from the DC Circuit (e.g., …

After the DC Court of Appeals essentially invited a party to file an anti-SLAPP special motion to dismiss in a DC federal court diversity case, it took seven months for the Associated Press to accept the invitation. That motion apparently opened the floodgates, as three more parties have now filed anti-SLAPP motions in separate DC federal court cases.

For the second time in ten months, Superior Court Judge Steven Wellner has granted a special motion to dismiss under the DC anti-SLAPP statute. Here’s the background of this case.