Knight v. Knight
Nebraska Court of Appeals · 1992-12-29 · cited 27×
In this defamation case, Joan Knight sued her brother-in-law Robert Knight for libel and slander after he provided statements to the police and bank officials accusing her of assaulting her husband with a knife. The trial court granted partial summary judgment to Robert, ruling that his statements to law enforcement were absolutely privileged. On appeal, the court reversed, determining that such communications to police are only conditionally privileged, meaning they could form the basis for a defamation claim if made with malice, and remanded for further proceedings because the statements were not made in a judicial or quasi-judicial context.