CARSON CITY, Nev. (Legal Newsline) – A gambler’s bet that he could take down Nevada’s Anti-SLAPP law is a loser, as the Nevada Supreme Court ruled against him on July 30.
Dr. Nicholas Colon’s attorneys at Nersesian & Sankiewicz came up with the strategy in an attempt to pursue their client’s defamation lawsuit against the Nevada Gaming Control Board, which is alleged to have shown Colon using a device at a blackjack table during a presentation.
Though Colon wasn’t named – and his face wasn’t shown while using a tally counter device under the table – he says it was obvious that he was the person in the clip. The NGCB and deputy chief James Taylor do not deny that the footage was of Colon.
Defendants routinely use Anti-SLAPP laws to head off defamation lawsuits. The laws entitle them to mount an early defense that their alleged actions are protected by free speech.
In Nevada, Colon’s case presented the Supreme Court with a chance to decide whether its Anti-SLAPP laws violate defamation plaintiffs’ right to a jury trial.
“Rather, they function as a procedural mechanism, much like summary judgment, that allows the court to summarily dismiss claims with no reasonable possibility of success,” Justice Lidia Stiglich wrote.
“Upon making the requisite showing under prong two, a plaintiff can proceed to a jury trial on the underlying claim. A plaintiff who has failed to meet this burden would not have been entitled to a jury trial, even absent an Anti-SLAPP motion to dismiss. The right to a jury trial is therefore still available.”
Taylor gave a presentation in 2017 called “Scams, Cheats, and Blacklists” to about 300 attendees at the Global Gaming Expo, which is organized by co-defendant American Gaming Association.
A nine-second video showed someone, only visible from the neck down, using a counter device under a blackjack table. Colon, who was in attendance and is a well-known gambler, argued it was obvious the clip was of him. He charged the defendants with calling him a cheater.
Colon admits to having the counter but says it can’t be used to cheat at blackjack. Though the district court denied the Anti-SLAPP motion to dismiss his case, the Supreme Court reversed.
“Taylor’s presentation was made in good faith,” Stiglich wrote. “Taylor’s declaration states that he acquired all of the information, videos and photographs used in his presentation through GCB investigations, and that the information contained in his presentation was true and accurate.
“This declaration shows that the gist of Taylor’s presentation was either truthful or made without knowledge of its falsehood.”