Firestone v. Time, Inc., 24562.
| Decision Date | 31 July 1969 |
| Docket Number | No. 24562.,24562. |
| Citation | 414 F.2d 790 |
| Parties | Mary Alice FIRESTONE, Appellant, v. TIME, INC., Appellee. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Fifth Circuit |
Joseph D. Farish, Joseph D. Farish, Jr., Farish & Farish, West Palm Beach, Fla., for appellant.
William S. Frates, Miami, Fla., Harold R. Medina, Jr., New York City, Larry S. Stewart, Miami, Fla., for appellee.
Before WISDOM and CARSWELL, Circuit Judges, and ROBERTS, District Judge.
Appellant-plaintiff sued appellee-defendant for libel in Florida state court. The case was removed to the District Court on the basis of diversity of citizenship. Thereafter the complaint was dismissed with leave to amend because appellant had failed to allege special damages. Appellant then filed an amended complaint alleging libel and invasion of privacy. The district court dismissed the amended complaint, again with leave to amend. Appellant declined to plead over and final judgment was entered against her. We reverse.
This Court has consistently held, as stated by Chief Judge Brown in Arthur H. Richland Company v. Harper, 302 F. 2d 324, 325 (5th Cir.1962), that:
"`* * * a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim should not be granted unless it appears to a certainty that the plaintiff would be entitled to no relief under any state of facts which could be proved in support of his claim * * *,\' Des Isles v. Evans, 5 Cir., 200 F.2d 614, 615," (Emphasis added.)
The allegedly libelous matter appeared in a feature story in appellee's publication, Life magazine, on May 20, 1966, dealing with electronic eavesdropping. The story contained a picture of appellant, her estranged husband and Jack Harwood, with the following caption:
TWO-WAY SNOOP. In Florida, where electronic eavesdropping is frequently employed in divorce suits, private eyes like Jack Harwood of Palm Beach shown above with some of his gear, do a thriving business. Harwood, who boasts, "I\'m a fantastic wire man," was hired by tire heir Russell Firestone to keep tabs on his estranged wife, Mary Alice. * * * She in turn got one of Harwood\'s assistants to sell out and work for her and, says Harwood, "He plays just as rough with the bugs as I do." * * * A court recently ordered Russell and Mary to stop spying on each other.
Appellant's amended complaint alleged, inter alia: (1) Appellant was injured in "her personal relations and reputation in the community;" (2) Harwood's unnamed assistant's credibility as a witness in the pending divorce action was damaged; (3) the article falsely implied that appellant was guilty of bribery and was "inciting to commit perjury;" (4) appellant had been injured in her pending marital litigation. Appellant further alleged that appellee's article was both false and malicious.
Appellant contends that the amended complaint states a sufficient claim of libel both...
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Firestone v. Time, Inc.
...the publication of an article in Life Magazine, owned by defendant. The matter is before us for the second time. (See Firestone v. Time, Inc., 5 Cir., 1969, 414 F.2d 790, for our prior opinion.) When this case was first appealed, Mrs. Firestone's complaint had been dismissed by the District......
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Pred v. Board of Public Instruction of Dade County, Fla.
...following cases should be added to those lists: Equity Capital Co. v. Sponder, 5 Cir., 1969, 414 F.2d 317 S.D.Fla.; Firestone v. Time, Inc., 5 Cir., 1969, 414 F.2d 790 S.D.Fla.; Stern, Hays & Lang, Inc. v. M/V Nili, 5 Cir., 1969, 407 F.2d 549 S.D.Fla.; Banco Continental v. Curtiss National ......