Waldbaum v. Fairchild Publications, Inc.

627 F.2d 1287 (1980)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

P became president and chief executive officer of Greenbelt Consumer Services, Inc. (Greenbelt). Greenbelt is a diversified consumer cooperative that, during Waldbaum's tenure, ranked as the second-largest cooperative in the country. P played an active role not only in the management of the cooperative but also in setting policies and standards within the supermarket industry. P held several meetings, to which press and public were invited, on topics varying from supermarket practices to energy legislation and fuel allocation. He pursued a vigorous policy of consolidating Greenbelt's operations to eliminate unprofitable outlets. These actions generated considerable comment on both Greenbelt and P in trade journals and general-interest publications. Greenbelt's board of directors dismissed P. D's trade publication ran an item on P's ouster on page 35 of its March 22 issue. The five-sentence article stated at one point that Greenbelt 'has been losing money the last year and retrenching.' P filed a libel action. P contended that Greenbelt had not been losing money or retrenching and that this allegedly false report damaged his reputation as a businessman. P sought actual and exemplary damages totaling $75,000. D moved for summary judgment. It argued that P was a public figure and because he had admitted the absence of 'actual malice.' The court granted the motion holding that P was a limited public figure. P appealed.