Brokate
Brokate v. Hehr Manufacturing Co.
Opinion
Opinion
Roth, J.
This is an appeal from a judgment of dismissal entered after an order sustaining a demurrer of respondent to the cross-complaint of A. W. Brokate, appellant herein.
On December 16, 1964, Russell T. Swendseid, as plaintiff, filed suit against A. W. Brokate for slander. Swendseid is not a party to this appeal. Swendseid, in his complaint, alleged he is a certified public accountant, and at all times relevant to the suit acted as accountant for one Elmer T. Hehr in his personal matters “and ... in the conduct of [Hehr’s] respective business enterprises,” and that on or about December 17, 1963, at the residence of Elmer T. Hehr and in the presence of Elmer T. Hehr and Betty Hehr, appellant falsely and maliciously said: “Russell T. Swendseid is going to lose his C.P.A. license, or at the least will be thrown out of Frazer and Torbet (plaintiff’s employer) because Swendseid has misled the board of directors of Ridgelite in order to line his own pockets; that Swendseid received a secret finder’s fee for the Ridgelite investment; that Swendseid pocketed at least some of the money supposedly used by the Hehr Enterprises to buy the stock of the original Ridgelite Company. ’ ’