Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani Philadelphia Partner Alexander Nemiroff and Senior Counsel David Hiester achieved a complete dismissal of all claims with prejudice against the firm’s client, a technology company, in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
The plaintiff, an audio engineer, alleged defamation, false light, commercial disparagement, and tortious interference with actual or prospective contractual relations against GRSM’s client and claimed the client was vicariously liable for the actions of one of its employees who made certain defamatory statements.
The GRSM team successfully argued that the plaintiff’s amended complaint failed to plead sufficient facts to establish vicarious liability and that the plaintiff had not sufficiently pleaded any underlying tort for which vicarious liability was asserted against the client. The court dismissed the amended complaint in its entirety against GRSM’s client, finding that the act of a company sending an individual to a conference and covering the costs of attendance does not automatically establish vicarious liability for all statements made by the employee during the event, particularly when those statements are unrelated to the employee’s professional duties. The plaintiff failed to allege facts sufficient to convince the court that the statements made by the employee were within the scope of his employment.
This result reflects the strength of GRSM’s Employment practice, which is trusted by employers across all 50 states to defend against high-stakes litigation. With nearly 500 attorneys focused on employment law, GRSM provides a powerhouse defense strategy that helps businesses—from Fortune 500 companies to closely held enterprises—mitigate risk, resolve disputes efficiently, and avoid the costly disruptions that employment claims can trigger.