Evans v. Dayton Newspapers, Inc.

566 N.E.2d 704, 57 Ohio App. 3d 57, 1989 Ohio App. LEXIS 1432
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedApril 20, 1989
Docket10983
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 566 N.E.2d 704 (Evans v. Dayton Newspapers, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Ohio Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Evans v. Dayton Newspapers, Inc., 566 N.E.2d 704, 57 Ohio App. 3d 57, 1989 Ohio App. LEXIS 1432 (Ohio Ct. App. 1989).

Opinion

Wolff, P.J.

Walter C. Evans appeals from a judgment, entered pursuant to Civ. R. 12(B)(6), dismissing his amended complaint against ap-pellees Dayton Newspapers, Inc. and its employee John Erickson. Evans claims that the trial court erred in dismissing his amended complaint.

Before considering the substantive aspect of this case, we must first consider two procedural issues.

Evans contends that the trial court was required to state findings of fact *58 and conclusions of law. This contention is incorrect. Civ. R. 52 is confined to nonjury trials. Furthermore, the obligation to state findings of fact and conclusions of law is triggered by a party’s request. Evans made no such request of the trial court.

Evans also contends that the decision of the trial court is void because it was entered pursuant to a pretrial order entered by a trial judge against whom a motion to disqualify was pending. The decision was rendered April 5, 1988 by a visiting judge who was assigned to the case by an entry of the Supreme Court, filed in the trial court March 22,1988. The decision sustained appellees’ motion to dismiss and directed them to prepare the final judgment.

On January 19, 1988, Evans filed an affidavit and motion for disqualification of the original trial judge with the clerk of the trial court. The original trial judge, by entry of January 25, 1988, scheduled a pretrial conference for February 12, 1988, on Evans’ motion to disqualify and ap-pellees’ motion to dismiss. On January 26, Evans filed the affidavit and motion for disqualification with the Supreme Court. A January 29, 1988 letter from the Supreme Court to the clerk of the trial court, a copy of which was sent to the original trial judge, indicated that the original trial judge “should not proceed with the case until the Chief Justice has passed upon the issue of disqualification.” The original trial judge held the previously scheduled pretrial conference on February 12, 1988 and entered a pretrial order February 23, 1988. The pretrial order scheduled a trial during the week of September 19, 1988 before a visiting judge. A copy of the pretrial order was sent to the Supreme Court. On March 16, 1988, the original trial judge entered a modification of his pretrial order, establishing March 21, 1988 as Evans’ deadline for responding to ap-pellees’ motion to dismiss, which had been pending since January 14, 1988. The March 16, 1988 order also provided that the motion would be considered at issue April 4, 1988. Evans did not respond to the motion to dismiss until April 6, 1988, the day after the visiting judge had rendered his decision.

We find no prejudice to Evans in the foregoing events. The adverse ruling on appellees’ motion to dismiss was made by the visiting judge. The original trial judge, informed by the Supreme Court that he “should not proceed,” did no more than fix deadlines for the orderly disposition of the case. His being informed that he should not proceed did not render his pretrial orders void, or the visiting judge’s decision, rendered in accordance with the timetable established by the pretrial orders, void. While the original trial judge, upon the filing of Evans’ motion and affidavit of disqualification in the Supreme Court, was divested of “authority to determine the cause or hear any matter affecting the substantial rights of the parties,” Tumbleson v. Noble (1959), 109 Ohio App. 242, at 244, 10 O.O. 2d 470, at 472, 164 N.E. 2d 808, at 810, he was not divested of authority to act in a ministerial capacity. Id. at 245, 10 O.O. 2d at 472, 164 N.E. 2d at 811. See, also, Cuyahoga Cty. Bd. of Mental Retardation v. Assn. of Cuyahoga Cty. Teachers of the Trainable Retarded (1975), 47 Ohio App. 2d 28, at 35-38, 1 O.O. 3d 168, at 172-174, 351 N.E. 2d 777, at 783-785. The February 12,1988 pretrial conference and the two following pretrial orders were no more than ministerial actions.

Turning now to the substantive question in the case, the issue presented is whether Evans’ amended complaint stated a claim upon which relief can be granted. Civ. R. 12(B)(6).

Appellees’ substantive arguments to the trial court were that Evans’ *59 amended complaint, to the extent that it stated a claim for libel, was barred by the statute of limitations and, to the extent that it stated a claim for “false light” invasion of privacy, it stated a claim not recognized by Ohio law.

On appeal, Evans acknowledges that any claim of libel was time-barred and that Ohio does not recognize “false light” invasion of privacy. He contends, however, that he has stated a claim for invasion of privacy which is recognized by Ohio law.

Paragraph two of the syllabus of Housh v. Peth (1956), 165 Ohio St. 35, 59 O.O. 60, 133 N.E. 2d 340, describes the three types of conduct giving rise to claims for invasion of privacy recognized in this state:

“An actionable invasion of the right of privacy is the unwarranted appropriation or exploitation of one’s personality, the publicizing of one’s private affairs with which the public has no legitimate concern, or the wrongful intrusion into one’s private activities in such a manner as to outrage or cause mental suffering, shame or humiliation to a person of ordinary sensibilities.”

Although Evans argues that he had stated claims within each of the three categories of conduct recognized in Ohio as actionable, we agree with appellees, particularly in light of Judge Norris’ discussion in Killilea v. Sears, Roebuck & Co. (1985), 27 Ohio App. 3d 163, at 166-167, 27 OBR 196, at 199-200, 499 N.E. 2d 1291, at 1294-1295, that if Evans has successfully stated a cognizable claim, it is of the “ ‘publicity’ tort.” Id. at 166, 27 OBR at 199, 499 N.E. 2d at 1294.

Killilea, as it discusses the publicity tort of invasion of privacy, provides:

“In order for plaintiff to state a claim for which relief can be granted under this cause of action:
“(1) There must be publicity; the disclosure must be of a public nature, not private. ‘Publicity’ means communicating the matter to the public at large, or to so many persons that the matter must be regarded as substantially certain to become one of public knowledge as opposed to ‘publication’ as that term of art is used in connection with liability for defamation as meaning any communication by the defendant .to a third person.
“(2) The facts disclosed must be those concerning the private life of an individual, not his public life. There is no liability when the defendant merely gives further publicity to information about the plaintiff that is already public, such as matters of public record about his birth or marriage date, or matters that the plaintiff leaves open to the public eye, such as kissing his spouse in public.
“(3) The matter publicized must be one which would be highly offensive and objectionable to a reasonable person of ordinary sensibilities.
“(4) The publication must have been made intentionally, not negligently. McCormick v. Haley (1973), 37 Ohio App. 2d 73 [66 O.O. 2d 132],

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

State v. Thompson
2016 Ohio 7521 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2016)
Columbus Checkcashers, Inc. v. Guttermaster, Inc.
2013 Ohio 5543 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2013)
State v. Ross
826 N.E.2d 287 (Ohio Supreme Court, 2004)
State ex rel. Stern v. Mascio
1998 Ohio 622 (Ohio Supreme Court, 1998)
State ex rel. Litty v. Leskovyansky
1996 Ohio 340 (Ohio Supreme Court, 1996)
State v. Mays
671 N.E.2d 553 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 1996)
Rife v. Morgan
667 N.E.2d 450 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 1995)
State ex rel. Howard v. Ferreri
1994 Ohio 130 (Ohio Supreme Court, 1994)
Kuntz v. Kuntz
657 N.E.2d 1348 (Ohio Supreme Court, 1992)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
566 N.E.2d 704, 57 Ohio App. 3d 57, 1989 Ohio App. LEXIS 1432, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/evans-v-dayton-newspapers-inc-ohioctapp-1989.