Wojcik v. Boston Herald, Inc., 60 Mass. App. Ct. 510 (Mass. App. Div. 2/26/2004), 03-P-479.

• Decision Date: 26 February 2004
• Docket Number: No. 03-P-479.,03-P-479.
• Parties: EDWARD WOJCIK & another<SMALL><SUP>1</SUP></SMALL> <I>vs.</I> BOSTON HERALD, INC., & others.<SMALL><SUP>2</SUP></SMALL>
• Court: Massachusetts Appellate Division

Page 510

60 Mass. App. Ct. 510

EDWARD WOJCIK & another¹vs.

BOSTON HERALD, INC., & others.²

No. 03-P-479.

Massachusetts Appellate Division.

Bristol.

June 10, 2003.

February 26, 2004.

Present: MASON, GRASSO, & GREEN, JJ.

Practice, Civil, Interlocutory appeal, Discovery. News Reporter. Evidence, Privileged communication. Constitutional Law, Freedom of speech and press.

A Superior Court judge in a defamation action exceeded the bounds of his discretion and erred in issuing an order that compelled disclosure of the identities of "confidential" sources who furnished information contributing to certain published newspaper stories, where it was premature on the present record to conclude that the plaintiffs' claim of defamation depended in any demonstrated manner on the identities of the sources for the newspaper stories. [513-517] GRASSO, J., dissenting.

CIVIL ACTION commenced in the Superior Court Department on September 4, 2001.

Motions to compel discovery and for a protective order were heard by Paul E. Troy, J.

A proceeding for interlocutory review was heard in the Appeals Court by Kafker, J.

M. Robert Dushman for the defendants.

Philip N. Beauregard (Michael Franco with him) for the plaintiffs.

GREEN, J.

Though no privilege allows a newspaper reporter to refuse a discovery request seeking the identity of the source of an allegedly libelous statement, we agree with the defendants that a judge of the Superior Court erred in ordering them to disclose the identities of the "confidential" sources who

1. Debra Wojcik.

2. Ellen Silberman, Cosmo Macero, and Karen Crummy.