Court Dismisses Rather’s Fraud, Interference Complaints
Former CBS anchorman Dan Rather can still proceed with $70 million breach-of-contract suit vs. CBS.
By B&C Staff -- Broadcasting & Cable, 9/22/2008 3:00:00 PM
The New York Supreme Court ruled that former CBS anchorman Dan Rather can’t sue for fraud, nor can he sue former CBS parent Viacom on claims that it interfered with his contract, but Rather can still proceed with a $70 million breach-of-contract suit.
Rather filed suit last September, claiming that CBS News committed "fraud" and "seriously damaged his reputation" by scapegoating him for an unsubstantiated 60 Minutes II report on President Bush's Vietnam-era service with the Texas Air National Guard.
Explaining his decision on the Viacom ruling, New York Supreme Court Justice Ira Gammerman said, “The defendants have not shown that the new Viacom Inc. is a successor to the interests of the old Viacom Inc., and that the new Viacom carries no liability for the old Viacom's alleged breaches.”
“I think the breach-of-contract claim is essentially a slam dunk, there's no defense to that,” Rather’s lawyer, Martin Gold, told Bloomberg outside of the courtroom. “They had fiduciary obligations to Dan and they breached them.”
“We are extremely gratified that the court has now dismissed the vast majority of Mr. Rather’s claims, including the fraud and tortuous interference with contract claims, all claims against the individual defendants, as well as all the claims against new Viacom,” CBS said in a statement.
“We expect, once we complete the discovery process, that the only two claims that remain in the case -- breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty -- will also be dismissed,” the company added.
