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Home > Arthur v. TMZ.com (federal)

Arthur v. TMZ.com (federal) [1]

Submitted by DMLP Staff on Fri, 09/19/2008 - 16:35

Summary

Threat Type: 

Lawsuit

Date: 

03/17/2008

Status: 

Concluded

Disposition: 

Dismissed (total)

Location: 

Texas

Verdict or Settlement Amount: 

N/A

Legal Claims: 

Defamation
Virgie Arthur,  mother of deceased celebrity Anna Nicole Smith, attempted to add several bloggers as defendants to a defamation lawsuit in Texas federal court.  Arthur originally filed claims of defamation and conspiracy to defame against Howard K. Stern, CBS Studios, and KPRC... read full description
Parties

Party Receiving Legal Threat: 

TMZ Productions Inc.; Harvey Levin; Art Harris; Nelda Turner; Bonnie Stern

Type of Party: 

Individual

Type of Party: 

Individual
Organization

Location of Party: 

  • Texas

Location of Party: 

  • California
  • Texas
  • Georgia

Legal Counsel: 

Neil C McCabe, Melvin Michael Meyer

Legal Counsel: 

William Wesley Ogden, Jr. (Rose Turner)
Description

Virgie Arthur,  mother of deceased celebrity Anna Nicole Smith, attempted to add several bloggers as defendants to a defamation lawsuit in Texas federal court.  Arthur originally filed claims of defamation and conspiracy to defame against Howard K. Stern, CBS Studios, and KPRC Houston after Stern and Anna Nicole Smith allegedly defamed Arthur on an episode of "Entertainment Tonight."  Numerous blogs and websites discussed and criticized Arthur following the episode and lawsuit.

In response, Arthur filed a motion to add the following defendants on the ground that they were part of the alleged conspiracy to defame her:

  • Celebrity gossip website TMZ.com and TMZ operator Harvey Levin, who  allegedly published a defamatory article that accused Arthur of marrying and having a child with her step-brother.
  • Bonne Stern, Stern's sister, who allegedly republished Anna Nicole Smith's defamatory statements and "corresponded with and directed" other conspirators (primarily via e-mail).
  • Nelda Turner, operator of blog "Rose Speaks," who allegedly forwarded defamatory information to TMZ and corresponded with Bonnie Stern via e-mail.
  • Art Harris, operator of blog "The Bald Truth" and frequent correspondent on "Entertainment Tonight," who allegedly republished Smith's statements in a blog post.

On June 26, 2008, the Texas federal court denied Arthur's motion to add the new defendants.  The court found that there was evidence that Arthur, who had failed in an earlier attempt to remand the case to state court, had attempted to add the defendants in part as an effort to destroy the court's diversity jurisdiction.  The court also noted that the new defendants' actions were sufficiently distinct from the disputed television broadcast that they could be litigated separately.

Prior to the court's decision, Arthur filed a related suit against Stern and all of the new defendants in Texas state court.  That suit still is ongoing.   See Arthur v. TMZ.com (state) [2] for more information. 

Arthur also has subpoenaed blogger Lyndal Harrington in this case.  See Arthur v. Harrington [3].

Related Links: 

  • The Life and Death of Anna Nicole Smith: Texas Has Jurisdiction Over Howard K. Stern. State Court Suit Against Bloggers And Additional Defendants Will Move Forward [4]
  • The Life and Death of Anna Nicole Smith: Legal Documents [5] (regularly updated collection of case documents)
    [5]
  • MLRC: Arthur v. Stern (scroll to entry for Arthur v. Stern, Civil No. 07-03742) [6]
Details

Web Site(s) Involved: 

TMZ.com [7]

Rose Speaks [8]

The Bald Truth [9]

[7]

Content Type: 

  • Text

Publication Medium: 

Blog
Website

Subject Area: 

  • Defamation
Court Information & Documents

Jurisdiction: 

  • Texas

Source of Law: 

  • Texas

Court Name: 

United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas

Court Type: 

Federal

Case Number: 

4:07-cv-03742

Relevant Documents: 

PDF icon 2008-03-17-Arthur Memo in Support of Adding TMZ as a Defendant.pdf [10]
PDF icon 2007-11-05-Arthur v. TMZ Notice of Removal.pdf [11]
PDF icon 2008-03-17-Arthur's Amended Motion to Add Defendants.pdf [12]
PDF icon 2008-06-26-Order Denying Arthur's Motion to Add Defendants.pdf [13]
PDF icon 2007-11-05-Pre-Removal Documents, Including Original Complaint.pdf [14]
CMLP Information (Private)

Threat Source: 

Google News

CMLP Notes: 

I marked the situation as "concluded" because the pre-existing suit -- against Stern and the broadcast companies -- is not a legal threat. {MCS}

"The Life and Death of Anna Nicole Smith" is a good site to check for updates.

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Source URL (modified on 08/20/2014 - 11:06pm): https://www.dmlp.org/threats/arthur-v-tmzcom-federal

Links
[1] https://www.dmlp.org/threats/arthur-v-tmzcom-federal
[2] https://www.dmlp.org/threats/arthur-v-tmzcom-state
[3] https://www.dmlp.org/threats/arthur-v-harrington
[4] http://annanicoleandhowardkstern.com/2008/06/texas-has-jurisdiction-over-stern-addition-of-bloggers-denied-in-arthur-vs-stern/
[5] http://annanicoleandhowardkstern.com/legal-documents-2/
[6] http://www.medialaw.org/Content/NavigationMenu/Hot_Topics/Lawsuits_Against_Bloggers/Lawsuits_Against_Bloggers.htm
[7] http://www.tmz.com
[8] http://www.rosespeaks.com/rose-blog
[9] http://www.artharris.com/
[10] https://www.dmlp.org/sites/dmlp.org/files/sites/citmedialaw.org/files/2008-03-17-Arthur%20Memo%20in%20Support%20of%20Adding%20TMZ%20as%20a%20Defendant.pdf
[11] https://www.dmlp.org/sites/dmlp.org/files/sites/citmedialaw.org/files/2007-11-05-Arthur%20v.%20TMZ%20Notice%20of%20Removal.pdf
[12] https://www.dmlp.org/sites/dmlp.org/files/sites/citmedialaw.org/files/2008-03-17-Arthur%27s%20Amended%20Motion%20to%20Add%20Defendants.pdf
[13] https://www.dmlp.org/sites/dmlp.org/files/sites/citmedialaw.org/files/2008-06-26-Order%20Denying%20Arthur%27s%20Motion%20to%20Add%20Defendants.pdf
[14] https://www.dmlp.org/sites/dmlp.org/files/sites/citmedialaw.org/files/2007-11-05-Pre-Removal%20Documents%2C%20Including%20Original%20Complaint.pdf