Facts

Plaintiff Kazim Z. Acar sued defendants Yosef Peretz, Sumy Kim, Jennifer E. Crane, and Fahimeh Rahravan, claiming legal malpractice. Defendants Peretz and Kim were attorneys who represented co-defendants Crane and Rahravan, former tenants of Acar.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS:
Acar contended, among other things, that Peretz and Kim committed slander and maliciously prosecuted him during their representation of the other defendants during litigation.

Plaintiff asserted claims for slander; malicious prosecution; filing frivolous and invalid motion to compel; intentional misrepresentation; conspiracy to win lawsuits with malice; breach of contract with malice; and intentional infliction of emotional distress with malice.

DEFENDANTS' CONTENTIONS:
Defendants sought to strike Acar's complaint as a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation, contending that his action was a frivolous defamation suit based on nebulous facts and incoherent causes of action. The court also found that Peretz and Kim are protected by the litigation privilege because the statements were solely while representing Crane and Rahravan. Defendant contended that the malicious prosecution claim failed because Acar had not won any actions against Peretz and Kim.

Result

The court granted defendants anti-SLAPP motion in its entirety.

Other Information

Plaintiff Kazim Z. Acar was in pro per. Peretz and Kim intend to file a motion for fees to recover their defense cost in prevailing on their SLAPP motion. Crane and Rahravan prevailed on a similar SLAPP motion under similar grounds.