THE MALONEY FIRM OBTAINS COURT OF APPEAL REVERSAL OF ADVERSE RULING ON ANTI-SLAPP MOTION
 
On August 24, 2017, the California Court of Appeal for the Second Appellate District issued an opinion reversing an order dismissing claims asserted by a client of The Maloney Firm, APC and vacating an order that the client pay attorneys’ fees. Carl I. S. Mueller prepared the appellate briefing, and Patrick Maloney argued the matter to the Court of Appeal.
 
The appeal stemmed from the trial court’s erroneous order that a cross-complaint filed by The Maloney Firm was brought in retaliation against the plaintiff for filing suit, thereby violating California’s Anti-SLAPP statute. The Court of Appeal reversed the trial court’s order, holding that the trial court misapplied the legal doctrine upon which the trial court’s ruling was based. In short, the Court of Appeal held that the fraudulent behavior on which the cross-complaint was based was not protected by the First Amendment and thus not insulated by the Anti-SLAPP statute. As a result of the Court of Appeal’s ruling, a fraud claim that the trial court had erroneously dismissed has been reinstated and the client is relieved of responsibility to pay his adversaries’ legal fees.
 
The entire ruling can be found here.

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