Papaliolios

Defendant Andreas G. Papaliolios (Papaliolios) appeals from an order denying his special motion to strike a libel claim under Code of Civil Procedure section 425.16 (the “anti-SLAPP” statute). The claim arises from a negative review of an apartment building Papaliolios posted to Yelp, an Internet Web site. Papaliolios asserts his review is mere opinion or, alternatively, substantially true and, therefore, nonlibelous. While many Internet critiques are nothing more than ranting opinions that cannot be taken seriously, Internet commentary does not ipso facto get a free pass under defamation law. Papaliolios’s review, in part, is susceptible of being read as containing factual assertions, not just mere opinion, and plaintiffs submitted sufficient evidence to meet their minimal burden under the anti-SLAPP statute to show a probability of prevailing on at least some aspect of their libel claim. We therefore affirm the order denying Papaliolios’s special motion to strike.

Factual and Procedural Background

Bently Nob Hill, LP, has owned the apartment building at 1360 Jones Street (the Jones Building) since March 2005. Christopher Bently (Bently) is an owner and managing…