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N.Y. Federal Court Rules State's Anti-SLAPP Statute Doesn't Apply in Federal Court Lawsuits

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York decided that the 2020 amendment to New York's anti-SLAPP statute, N.Y. Civil Rights Law §70-a, doesn't apply in federal court cases. The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Inc. (NATAS) v. Multimedia Design System Design Inc., 20-CV-7269. The NATAS case, which also includes copyright and trademark infringement claims, arose out of an online video produced by conspiracy-theory proponent Media Design that used an image of an Emmy Award statuette altered to be raising up a COVID-19 virus cell in honor of nations that took a skeptical position on the seriousness of the pandemic. Anti-SLAPP statutes are aimed at allowing a defendant to move to strike a "Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation," such as those based on public comments and content issued by a defendant. Section 70-a permits a prevailing anti-SLAPP motion defendant to be awarded damages that include attorney fees and costs. But dismissing Multimedia Design's anti-SLAPP bid, Southern District Judge Valerie Caproni explained: "The Second Circuit's recent decision in [La Liberte v. Reid, 966 F.3d 79 (2d Cir. 2020)] all but resolves the question presented in this case. In Reid, the Circuit considered whether the special motion-to-strike provision of California's anti-SLAPP statute, which requires outright dismissal unless the plaintiff can 'establish[ ] a probability that he or she will prevail on the claim,' could apply in federal court. … The Circuit held that the statute could not apply in federal court because the provision's 'probability of success' standard conflicts with Rules 12 and 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure." District Judge Caproni noted, "New York's anti-SLAPP law imposes a different, and higher, burden on the plaintiff at the pleading stage than the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure."