Stukuls v. State
New York Court of Appeals
42 N.Y.2d 272, 397 N.Y.S.2d 740, 366 N.E.2d 829 (1977)
- Written by Sarah Hoffman, JD
Facts
Dr. Henry Stukuls (plaintiff) was a tenure-seeking faculty member at the New York State University College at Cortland. Dr. Richard Jones was the college’s president. Jones received a letter that accused Stukuls of attempting to seduce a female student. Jones put the letter in Stukuls’s file, but he did not investigate the accusation or show the letter to Stukuls. Jones was absent from the college for a period during which Dr. Whitney Corey, the vice president of the college, was acting president. Corey obtained the letter from Stukuls’s file and submitted it to the tenure committee. Stukuls was subsequently denied tenure. Stukuls sued the State of New York (defendant) for defamation on the grounds that Corey’s actions injured his personal and professional reputation. The trial court found that Corey had absolute privilege and dismissed the case. Stukuls appealed, arguing that Corey had only qualified privilege.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Fuchsberg, J.)
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