Onetaste Incorporated v. Netflix, Inc.

Summary

The California Court of Appeal affirmed an order granting Netflix's special motion to strike OneTaste Incorporated's defamation complaint under California Code of Civil Procedure section 425.16. The court held that OneTaste failed to make a prima facie showing that Netflix published challenged statements in its documentary with actual malice. The opinion discusses the anti-SLAPP framework, the clear-and-convincing evidence standard for actual malice, and the relevance of evidence concerning a publisher's subjective belief.

Holdings

1. OneTaste's defamation claim arose from Netflix's distribution of a documentary concerning matters of public interest, which constituted protected speech activity under the anti-SLAPP statute.
2. OneTaste failed to make a prima facie showing, by clear and convincing evidence, that Netflix published the challenged statements with actual malice.
3. The court generally would not consider evidence that was not before the trial court, and OneTaste's requests for judicial notice or augmentation were properly denied except for augmentation with the trial court's tentative ruling.
4. OneTaste forfeited its constitutional and public-policy challenges because its briefing failed to specify a constitutional injury or provide cogent argument and supporting authority; its due-process challenge to the discovery stay also failed because it did not seek limited discovery under the statute.

Questions Presented

1. Whether OneTaste's defamation claim arose from Netflix's protected activity under Code of Civil Procedure section 425.16.
2. Whether OneTaste demonstrated a probability of prevailing on its defamation claim by making a prima facie showing that Netflix published the challenged statements with actual malice.
3. Whether OneTaste's constitutional and public-policy challenges to the anti-SLAPP statute were preserved and supported.
4. Whether the Court of Appeal should consider documents and evidence presented for the first time on appeal through requests for judicial notice or augmentation.

Disposition

affirmed