Oakley, Inc. v. Sean McWilliams
Opinion
Opinion
MEMORANDUM
Sean McWilliams appeals pro se from the district court’s final judgment awarding damages to Oakley, Inc. (“Oakley”) and James Jannard. On appeal, McWil-liams also challenges the district court’s prior grant of partial summary judgment to Oakley and Jannard. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 and we affirm.
The district court properly -granted summary judgment to Oakley and Jannard on their libel claim and did not ignore any evidence in the record. The evidence firmly establishes that McWilliams intentionally sent over a million false, unprivileged, derogatory, and harassing e-mails to Oakley, Jannard, and other third parties and that such e-mails seriously injured the reputation and character of Oakley and Jannard. See Cal. Civ.Code §§ 45-45a; see also Smith v. Maldonado, 72 Cal.App.4th 687 , 85 Cal.Rptr.2d 397, 402 (1999). Although “the truth of the offensive statements or communication is a complete defense against civil liability” in libel actions, Smith, 85 Cal.Rptr.2d at 403 , the record lacks sufficient evidence to create a genuine issue of material fact on the truth of McWilliams’s statements or on any other element of the libel claim.