Posted by Eugene Volokh:
Prof. Richard Epstein Dismissed from Book-Blurb Libel Case, on Jurisdcitional
Grounds:
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2009_03_01-2009_03_07.shtml#1236100487
According to the [1]Institute for Justice:
A Dallas judge yesterday ordered that nationally renowned law
professor Richard Epstein be dismissed from a defamation lawsuit
brought by Dallas developer H. Walker Royall. In that lawsuit,
Royall claimed that Epstein defamed him merely by writing a blurb
on the back cover of Bulldozed: �Kelo,� Eminent Domain, and the
American Lust for Land. Carla Main, the author of Bulldozed, and
Encounter Books, the book�s publisher, remain targets of Royall�s
lawsuit.
Bulldozed tells the story of eminent domain abuse in Freeport,
Texas, and ties that story to the larger issue of eminent domain
abuse in America after the U.S. Supreme Court�s infamous decision
in Kelo v. City of New London. Royall was a key player in the
Freeport debacle, having signed an agreement with the city of
Freeport whereby the city would take land owned by a local seafood
business through eminent domain and transfer it to Royall�s company
for a luxury marina development project. During that dispute,
Royall sued the targets of the takings, the Gore family, over
statements they made about Royall on a website opposing the taking.
When Carla Main wrote a book about eminent domain abuse in
Freeport, Royall sued her, too, along with her publisher. When
Epstein contributed a blurb to the back cover, Royall sued him.
Royall also sued a local newspaper that ran a review of Bulldozed
and the writer who wrote the review.
Epstein is now out of the lawsuit. Dallas Judge Carlos Cortez
ordered Epstein�s dismissal after Royall failed to show that the
Texas court had jurisdiction over the Illinois resident, who has
not been to Texas in more than 13 years.
Epstein is a professor at the University of Chicago Law School and
New York University School of Law. Ironically, he is the author of
a prominent book on eminent domain, as well as a torts casebook
that is used in law schools across the United States.... [A]lthough
Epstein has now been dismissed, Main and Encounter remain as
defendants....
References
1. http://www.ij.org/
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