Benassi v. Georgia-Pacific

62 Or. App. 698, 662 P.2d 760 (1983)

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Benassi v. Georgia-Pacific

Oregon Court of Appeals
62 Or. App. 698, 662 P.2d 760 (1983)

SH

Facts

William Benassi (plaintiff) was a general manager of a division of Georgia-Pacific (defendant). On two business trips, Benassi spoke in a loud and profane manner to other employees and a consultant for Georgia-Pacific. Alcohol was involved, but according to Benassi and the other employees, Benassi was not drunk. Georgia-Pacific received an anonymous letter from someone who witnessed the second incident that claimed everyone involved was drunk. Benassi was fired. Morris Rivers replaced Benassi as general manager, and Rivers held a meeting with more than 100 employees during which he stated that Benassi had a drinking problem and had been fired for getting drunk and misbehaving. Benassi had trouble finding another job, which he attributed to these defamatory statements. Benassi sued Georgia-Pacific for defamation, and Georgia-Pacific raised privilege as an affirmative defense. The trial court held that qualified privilege did apply and left it to the jury to determine whether the privilege had been lost due to abuse. The jury returned a verdict and damages in favor of Benassi. Georgia-Pacific appealed. On appeal, Georgia-Pacific argued that the court should have granted its motion for a directed verdict based on qualified privilege.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Buttler, J.)

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