Shupe v. Rose's Stores, Inc.
| Decision Date | 27 November 1972 |
| Citation | 192 S.E.2d 766,213 Va. 374 |
| Parties | Catherine H. SHUPE v. ROSE'S STORES, INCORPORATED. |
| Court | Virginia Supreme Court |
John H. Tate, Jr., Marion (Gwyn & Tate, Marion, on brief), for plaintiff in error.
James P. Jones, Abingdon (Penn, Stuart & Eskridge, Abingdon, on brief), for defendant in error.
Before SNEAD, C.J., and I'ANSON, CARRICO, HARRISON, COCHRAN, HARMAN and POFF, JJ.
I'ANSON, Justice.
This action for libel, under the common law and the insulting words, statute, Code § 8--630, was instituted by Catherine H. Shupe, plaintiff, against Rose's Stores, Incorporated, defendant, to recover compensatory and punitive damages. The case was tried to a jury, and at the conclusion of all the evidence defendant renewed its motion to strike out plaintiff's evidence. The motion was sustained by the trial court, and summary judgment was entered dismissing plaintiff's action.
The controlling question presented is whether the trial court erred in striking out plaintiff's evidence and dismissing her action.
The evidence shows that defendant operated a large retail store in the town of Marion, Virginia. There were twelve check-out counters located in the various departments of the store.
On April 3, 1970, C. W. Baldwin was in the shoe department of Rose's store, and he noticed a paper writing posted on the cash register in such a place that it was visible to anyone at the check-out counter. The wording of the notice was as follows:
Later on in the afternoon of that day Baldwin told his wife that he had seen the notice at Rose's store and she telephoned plaintiff and told her about it. Plaintiff called back, and at her request the Baldwins provided transportation to the store so she could see the notice herself.
When they arrived at the store they went to the cash register in the shoe department and plaintiff copied the wording of the notice down on a piece of paper. She complained to one of the assistant managers and asked to see the manager. While waiting to see the manager she found similar notices on two other cash registers at check-out counters. The manager advised plaintiff that the notices had been posted as a result of a conversation with her husband. While plaintiff was discussing the matter with the store manager the assistant manager removed the notices and destroyed them.
Plaintiff and her husband were having marital difficulties and were living separate and apart. In addition to the communication to the defendant, the husband had a notice inserted in a local newspaper stating that he would not be responsible for any debts other than those contracted by himself.
Plaintiff was employed as a bookkeeper and secretary. She said she was embarrassed, upset and nervous over the notice posted in the store and it was necessary for her physician to prescribe medicine for her nerves.
In M. Rosenberg & Sons v. Craft, 182 Va. 512, 29 S.E.2d 375, 151 A.L.R. 1095 (1944); Carwile v. Richmond Newspapers, Inc., 196 Va. 1, 82 S.E.2d 588 (1954); and Weaver v. Beneficial Finance Company, 200 Va. 572, 106 S.E.2d 620 (1959), we held that in an action for libel or slander the common-law rules of...
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Gazette, Inc. v. Harris
...and standing in the community, embarrassment, humiliation, and mental suffering. We modified language contained in Shupe v. Rose's Stores, 213 Va. 374, 192 S.E.2d 766 (1972), to the extent that Shupe may have indicated that emotional upset and embarrassment cannot constitute "special damage......
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Kalantar v. Lufthansa German Airlines
...those for slander" in terms of applicable law. Fleming v. Moore, 221 Va. 884, 275 S.E.2d 632, 635 (1981) (citing Shupe v. Rose's Stores, 213 Va. 374, 192 S.E.2d 766, 767 (1972) (other citations omitted)). In this case, Kalantar alleges that Starks and Vali-Coleman made statements about him ......
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Doe v. Delta Airlines, Inc.
...230 Va. 142, 146–47, 334 S.E.2d 846 (1985)(setting out common law standard for defamation per se ); Shupe v. Rose's Stores, Inc., 213 Va. 374, 376, 192 S.E.2d 766 (1972)(identifying words at common law which are actionable per se )).Doe argues that the implication that she was publicly into......
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Jafari v. Old Dominion Transit Mgmt. Co.
...Va. 569, 575, 612 S.E.2d 203 (Va.2005); Fleming v. Moore, 221 Va. 884, 889, 275 S.E.2d 632 (Va.1981) (citing Shupe v. Rose's Stores, 213 Va. 374, 376, 192 S.E.2d 766 (Va.1972)). The elements of defamation in Virginia are “(1) publication of (2) an actionable false statement with (3) the req......