Dorshow

INTRODUCTION

Plaintiff James Doroshow appeals from a summary judgment in favor of Defendants Charles Delle Donne et al. Defendants are individual members of a private country club (the Club), who served on the Club’s board of directors and/or rules committee. Plaintiff sued Defendants for defamation and damages allegedly caused by his expulsion from the Club. The trial court granted Defendants’ motion for summary judgment based largely on the finding that the process for expelling Plaintiff from the Club “does not have to be perfect; it has to be fair and the court finds that it was.” Because the court’s finding purports to resolve disputed issues of material fact, it cannot support summary judgment. We therefore reverse.

FACTS1 AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Plaintiff joined the Club in 2006, after paying $100,000 for a “full equity membership.” In his membership application, Plaintiff agreed to abide by the Club’s by- laws, rules and regulations. The Club’s by-laws authorize the rules committee to “investigate written complaints concerning the conduct of any member . . . and to take action thereon, and/or report to the Board of Directors its findings and recommendations as to…