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Association Servs. Inc. v. Smith

A videotape and report stating that plaintiff feigned a workers' compensation injury could not support plaintiff's defamation claim because they were unpublished privileged communications under O.C.G.A. § 51-5-7 2 and 3.

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This case involves four related appeals. Bobbie Smith and Joann Pierce filed separate actions against Association Services, Inc. “ASI”, John Bullock & Company Southeast, Inc., and Michael Littleton, each asserting the following causes of action: 1 intrusion upon seclusion or solitude; 2 false light invasion of privacy; 3 defamation and conspiracy to commit defamation; 4 conspiracy to invade privacy; 5 conspiracy to commit criminal conduct; and 6 RICO violations. Smith subsequently dismissed her defamation and RICO claims, and Pierce dismissed her RICO claim. ASI filed motions for summary judgment in both cases. With respect to Smith’s action, the trial court denied the motion as to the claims of intrusion upon seclusion and conspiracy to violate privacy and granted summary judgment in favor of ASI on Smith’s remaining claims. Likewise, in Pierce’s action, the trial court denied the motion as to the claims of intrusion upon seclusion and conspiracy to violate privacy, and granted summary judgment in favor of ASI on Pierce’s remaining claims. The court signed certificates of immediate review in both cases, and we granted the applications for interlocutory appeal. ASI appeals the partial denial of its motions for summary judgment, and Smith and Pierce each appeal the partial grants of summary judgment in their respective cases. For reasons explained below, we affirm.

Both actions share an underlying factual basis, and we will briefly summarize the evidence and then address the errors enumerated in the four related appeals. As a preliminary matter, we note that

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