Brunner v. Holloway

235 So. 3d 1153
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedNovember 2, 2017
DocketNO. 2017 CA 0674
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 235 So. 3d 1153 (Brunner v. Holloway) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Brunner v. Holloway, 235 So. 3d 1153 (La. Ct. App. 2017).

Opinions

THERIOT, J.

1gThe Appellants, Baptiste Brunner, et al (“Appellants”) appeal the judgment of the Nineteenth Judicial District. Court granting John F. Holloway’s and Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity’s (“Appellees”) Motion for Summary Judgment. For the following reasons, we sustain a peremptory exception raising the objection of no cause of action noticed by this court on our own motion, we vacate the summary judgment, and we render judgment in favor of Appel-lees, dismissing the petition with prejudice.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Appellants in this case were students at Louisiana State University (“LSU”) during the fall of 2011. Appellants were also members of the LSU chapter of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity (“the LSU chapter”). In November 2011, each Appellant was expelled from the LSU chapter for violation of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity’s policies.

The primary incident leading to this lawsuit occurred on November 15, 2011, when John F. Holloway (“Mr. Holloway”) made an online social media post which stated, “Up way to[o] early. En route [to] Baton Rouge. The fraternity world of old is dead; beer monkeys and dope heads are extinct. THAT’S THE DEAL.”1 At that time, Mr. Holloway was the Director of Chapter Services for Lambda Chi Apha Fraternity Incorporated (“Lambda Chi Apha”). Mr. Holloway made the post in question while travelling to Baton Rouge to conduct a membership review of the LSU chapter.

The membership review was conducted on November 19, 2011. According to Mr. Holloway, the membership review included a meeting 1 ^between himself and the fraternity members, as well as individual interviews between volunteers and the fraternity members. Appellants alleged that, at the meeting, Mr. Holloway gave the fraternity members a choice to resign or take a drug test as part of the review process. Appellants further alleged that each of the Appellants submitted to the drug test and passed their individual drug tests.

As for the individual interviews, Mr. Holloway stated that he facilitated the review process, but did not attend the individual interviews. The interviews were conducted by volunteers, who sought information regarding whether the individual members had been aware of drug use previously or had participated in drug use recently.

A few days after the membership review, a large number of the LSU Chapter’s members were expelled from the fraternity, including members who passed their drug tests. Several more members were suspended or otherwise disciplined. Each of the disciplined members received a Notice of Disciplinary Action dated November 20, 2011 and signed by Mr. Holloway. Mr. Holloway admitted to signing each of these letters, but denied making any determinations in regard to individual membership.

Following the aforementioned expulsions and suspensions, two newspapers published articles regarding these disciplinary actions. The first article was published by the Baton Rouge Advocate on November 23, 2011. The Advocate’s article stated that close to sixty members of the LSU chapter had been accused of drug abuse or other violations of fraternity rules following the membership review. The Advocate’s article also published the primary social media post at issue in this case.

The second article was published by the Daily Reveille—LSU’s student newspaper—on November 28, 2011. The Daily Reveille’s article | ¿stated that “[s]ome members were evicted from the Lambda Chi house on campus after being suspended or expelled by the national organization for unspecified actions that violated the fraternity’s national standards.” The article did not mention Mr. Holloway’s tweet, nor did it mention any alcohol or drug abuse.

On November 19, 2012, Appellants filed suit against Mr. Holloway and Lambda Chi Alpha, alleging that Appellants were wrongfully expelled from the LSU chapter of Lambda Chi Alpha. Appellants further alleged that Mr. Holloway had defamed Appellants in his online posting. Appellants' also alleged that because Mr. Holloway was acting in the course and scope of his employment when the post was made,. Lambda Chi Alpha was vicariously liable for Mr. Holloway’s actions. Finally, Appellants alleged Mr. Holloway’s post, along with the subsequent newspaper coverage, constituted an invasion of privacy. The wrongful expulsion claim was later dismissed via consent judgment on January 28, 2014.

On September 11, 2014, Appellees filed Peremptory Exceptions raising the objections of No Cause of Action and Prescription. Appellees specifically argued that Appellants failed to state a cause of action for defamation or invasion of privacy. Further, in regard to prescription, Appellees argued that Appellants failed to bring their suit within the one year prescriptive period. Mr. Holloway’s tweets were posted on November 14 and 15, 2011. Appellants did not file suit until November 19, 2012. Accordingly, Appellees argued that because Appellants did not bring their lawsuit within one year of November 15, 2011, Appellants’ defamation and invasion of privacy claims were prescribed.

In response to Appellees’ exceptions, Appellants argued that they had succeeded in stating a cause of action for their defamation claim and theiij s invasion of privacy claim. Appellants also argued that the one year prescriptive period did not begin until the tweet was published by the Advocate on November 28, 2011.2 As such, Appellants argued that their suit was brought within the prescriptive period.

On December 17,. 2014, the trial court entered a judgment granting Appellees’ Exception of Prescription in part.3 Specifically, the trial court found that Appellant’s claims of defamation and invasion of privacy had prescribed as to Mr. Holloway’s tweets, but not as to the disciplinary letters. The trial court also denied Appellees’ Exception of No Cause of Action as it related to the disciplinary letters issued by Lambda Chi Alpha, without prejudice.

On December 18, 2014, Appellants filed a Mption for New Trial. On April 30, 2015, Appellants’ Motion for New Trial was denied.4 On May 19, 2016, Appellees filed a Motion for Summary Judgment, arguing that Appellants failed to satisfy every essential element of their remaining claims for defamation and invasion of privacy. Specifically, Appellees argued that because the tweets had been dismissed from the litigation, Appellants had only the disciplinary letters as evidence, which were never published to the public. Appellants argued in response that, although the previous judgment had. found that their claims of defamation and invasion of privacy had prescribed as to Mr. Holloway’s tweets, their injuries were not suffered on|R the day of the tweet. Instead, Appellants argued that their claim began the day that the allegedly defamatory statement was published. Specifically, Appellants argued that the defamatory statement was first published on November 23, 2011, which meant that prescription did not commence until that date. Under this line of reasoning, Appellants argued that their defatnation 'and invasion of privacy claims had not' prescribed. Accordingly, Appellants argued that the trial court should not grant Appellees’ Motion for Summary Judgment.

A hearing on the Motion for Summary Judgment was held on November 7, 2016.

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Bluebook (online)
235 So. 3d 1153, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/brunner-v-holloway-lactapp-2017.