GC Defamation Suit
Against
Union Attorney Lays an
Egg
----------------------------------
Tile Workers Lawyer
Covered
by Special Privilege
There has been another state court ruling on alleged union torts; this one
found no liability.
Kevin Atkinson worked for Dobbins Group as a site superintendent at a
project at Fort Sheridan. Dobbins had subcontracted floor installation
to Polco Flooring, a nonunion subcontractor, and Local 67 of the Tile
Installers Union picketed the site in July 2003. During the occasions
when picketers were present Atkinson confronted them, particularly the
business agent. Although he claimed they were obstructing workers the
picketers claimed that he threw their drinks and food on the ground,
insulted them, stabbed their inflatable rat to deflate it, and otherwise
harassed them. On July 28 Atkinson was arrested, and shortly
thereafter Frank Marco, union counsel, wrote a letter to Dobbins Group.
Seeking reimbursement for the damage to union property, Marco’s letter
advised that “your employee Kevin Atkinson…as your superintendent, ….has
destroyed and damaged property belonging to our local.” The letter
went on to threaten litigation, but a third party covered the cost of the
damage.
An appellate court has upheld the dismissal of a subsequent defamation claim
by Atkinson against individual union officials, including the business agent
present during the picketing. Kevin Atkinson v. Ralph Affronti,
et al, No. 1-05-3992 (1st Dist. Dec. 2006). Such a letter
“is absolutely privileged to public defamatory matter concerning another in
communications preliminary to a proposed judicial proceeding,” the court
ruled. An attorney must be free to “candidly and zealously represent
his client in communications to potential opposing parties in litigation or
other proceedings,” without the potential dangerf legal exposure because of
his efforts.
Atkinson had argued that the privilege should not apply when such a
communication is made in bad faith, but the court ruled that the privilege
was absolute.
1/23/07
