Representation of victims of slanderous speech and libelous publications.

          The following are examples of our representation in this practice area:

            We successfully represented a retired Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in a defamation action arising from the publication of an introduction to a book. In addition to a monetary settlement, our resolution of the case achieved a prominent retraction and apology, an agreement not to reissue the book with the offending passages, and the destruction of all copies of the book’s first edition in the possession of the publisher and distributor.

            Sprague & Sprague obtained significant monetary recoveries for school district officials who were defamed by a newspaper.

            After defeating defense motions for summary judgment, the Firm obtained the settlement of a defamation action on behalf of a renowned scientist falsely portrayed in an article as having unleashed a deadly viral disease in the course of his development of a vaccine in the 1950's. This case required the development of a broad range of scientific evidence as well as the investigation and reconstruction of events occurring almost a half-century ago.

            In a defamation action on behalf of a county district attorney, Sprague & Sprague persuaded the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to reverse a century old position and recognize a cause of action for defamation by a public figure falsely accused of acting in a racist manner in the performance of his official duties.