Richard Bauer, Individually and as Trustee for the Kendall Bauer Trust
v.
Bradley R. Brinkman
Richard Bauer seeks further review of the court of appeals opinion that determined Bradley R. Brinkman’s statements regarding Bauer being a “slumlord” posted on Facebook were those of opinion and therefore, protected by the First Amendment.
Applicant
Richard Bauer, Individually and as Trustee for the Kendall Bauer Trust
Resister
Bradley R. Brinkman
Attorney for the Applicant
Harold K. Widdison
Attorneys for the Resister
Ryland Deinert
Rene Charles Lapierre
Supreme Court
Oral Argument Schedule
Non-Oral
Mar 24, 2021 1:30 PM
Briefs
Supreme Court Opinion
Opinion Number:
Date Published:
Date Amended:
Court of Appeals
Court of Appeals Opinion
Opinion Number:
Date Published:
Summary
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Woodbury County, Jeffrey A. Neary, Judge. AFFIRMED. Considered by Bower, C.J., and May and Ahlers, JJ. Opinion by Ahlers, J. (10 pages)
Richard Bauer filed a defamation suit over comments Bradley Brinkman made on Facebook. The district court denied Bauer’s motion for partial summary judgment and granted Brinkman’s motion for summary judgment. OPINION HOLDS: Brinkman’s comments may have been vulgar, offensive, insulting, and just plain rude, but they did not rise to the level of defamatory statements because they were expressions of opinion protected by the first amendment. Finding the statements at issue did not constitute defamation, we affirm the district court’s denial of Bauer’s motion for summary judgment and grant of summary judgment to Brinkman.