EDPA Ruling Allows Defamation Case Against University of Pennsylvania to Move Forward

EDPA Ruling Allows Defamation Case Against University of Pennsylvania to Move Forward

Spector Gadon Rosen Vinci P.C. Employment Law Chair Alan B. Epstein and Associate Adam Filbert secured a favorable ruling in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on May 14, allowing the defamation case of our client, a former University of Pennsylvania professor, against the school to move forward. The decision was met with excellent coverage provided by both Law360 and The Legal Intelligencer.

Judge Gene E. K. Pratter said Penn leaders embraced “cancel culture” when they chastised then-anthropology professor Janet Monge for handling remains from the 1985 MOVE house bombing in Philadelphia.

Judge Pratter’s remarks came in her ruling greenlighting Monge’s claims that former Penn President Amy Gutmann and former Provost Wendell Pritchett defamed her by emailing a statement criticizing her for using the remains in an online anthropology course. The judge denied Penn’s motion to dismiss the claims that it defamed Monge through its reaction to accusations that she acted unethically in her handling of remains.

Judge Pratter ruled that Monge made plausible allegations that Penn acted out of actual malice when it issued the statement.

Alan B. Epstein is the Chair of Spector Gadon Rosen Vinci’s Employment Law Practice Group and concentrates his practice in civil litigation representation in the areas of employment rights, civil rights, and constitutional torts and the provision of transactional advice in all areas of corporate governance, including personalized advice to corporate officers, Boards and Board Members regarding adherence to state and federal regulations. He is frequently called upon to provide transactional advice to, negotiate employment contracts and severance agreements on behalf of, and litigate matters for, corporate entities, corporate officers and Directors, and licensed professionals (and their entities), including lawyers, doctors, bankers, accountants, pharmacists, and architects, as well as insurance, real estate, and security brokers.

Adam A. Filbert focuses his practice primarily on Employment Law and Commercial litigation. He has accumulated a diverse array of experiences, including those from his time spent with SGRV previously through Drexel University’s Thomas R. Kline School of Law’s Co-Op program.

Spector Gadon Rosen Vinci P.C. has represented clients nationally and internationally for nearly 50 years and provides counsel and expertise across the entire spectrum of legal practice, from complex litigation to sophisticated transactional and corporate matters. The firm has offices in Philadelphia, New Jersey, Florida, and New York.

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