Salazar

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Defendant Brian Whelan is an attorney based in Fresno, California, who was litigating two lawsuits on behalf of former employees of plaintiff Robert “Bobby” Salazar, a Central Valley restaurateur. While those employment suits were pending, Salazar and his companies (plaintiffs) brought the instant defamation suit against Whelan and his law firm (defendants) for, in Salazar’s view, publicly and falsely accusing Salazar of orchestrating several retaliatory arson attacks against Whelan and two others involved in the employment lawsuits. Defendants responded by filing an anti-SLAPP motion to strike the complaint in its entirety, which the trial court ultimately denied. Salazar’s complaint alleges causes of action for defamation, false light, and intentional and negligent interference with prospective economic advantage—all arising from two sets of public statements by Whelan following the most recent arson incident. In the early morning hours of June 23, 2021, an unknown individual ignited and destroyed three cars belonging to the family of Whelan’s client, Hilda Lopez, a former cook at one of Salazar’s restaurants. Lopez had just sued Salazar and the…