Beroiz

In a defamation action by appellants Denny J. Beroiz, Robert Delmer, and Samuel T. Rees, the trial court granted motions for summary judgment by defendants and respondents Elena Gladys Alamo Janine, Therese Marian, and Tony Wahl. We affirm.

Relevant Factual and Procedural Background

On July 17, 1997, appellants filed their complaint against respondents, as well as Charlotte Boddeker, George Boddeker, Barbara Smith, Eugene Smith, and Shirley Tate. The complaint alleges the following facts: Appellants, and defendants, including respondents, were residents of a condominium complex in Mexico named “Condominio Las Gaviotas.” Appellants were members of the homeowners association, and from March 1991 to March 1996, they served for periods on a vigilance committee that oversees the complex’s professional administrator. During this period, defendants, including respondents, violated the homeowners association’s rules, requiring action by appellants as members of the vigilance committee. In response, defendants entered into a conspiracy to defame appellants. Respondents made defamatory criminal accusations against appellants, the most recent of which was filed in 1997.…