On December 7, 2023, the First Department issued a decision in Durst Pyramid LLC v. Silver Cinemas Acquisition Co., 2023 NY Slip Op. 06311, holding that an allegedly defamatory statement was protected by the absolute litigation privilege, explaining:
As to defendants’ cross-motion to amend their answer to add a counterclaim for defamation, Supreme Court providently exercised its discretion to deny that cross-motion, as the proposed cause of action would not have survived a motion to dismiss. The complaint alleges that the tenant wrongfully removed Landlord’s property, which was required to remain in the Premises under the terms of the lease. The allegedly defamatory statement, in turn, appeared in an article describing the landlord’s lawsuit against defendants and included a statement from the landlord’s representative that “We are still showing the space — minus the stuff [the tenant] stole.” Read in context and applying the ordinary meaning of words, the quoted statement is protected by the absolute privilege of Civil Rights Law § 74 as a fair and true report of a judicial proceeding, and also was substantially accurate.
(Internal quotations and citations omitted).