Mark W. White v. Robert J. Trew

Summary

The North Carolina Supreme Court held that when a complaint does not specify whether a public official is sued in an official or individual capacity for actions taken within the scope of employment, the official is presumed to be sued only in the official capacity. Because the plaintiff’s libel claim was an intentional tort and the defendant was a public official, sovereign immunity barred the action. The court also concluded that review of the performance evaluation by university administrators and in-house counsel did not constitute actionable publication under the circumstances.

Holdings

1. When a complaint does not specify the capacity in which a public official is being sued for actions taken in the course and scope of employment, the court must presume that the official is being sued only in his official capacity.
2. Sovereign immunity bars an intentional-tort claim, including libel, against a public official sued in his official capacity.

Questions Presented

1. Whether a complaint that does not specify whether a public official is sued in an official or individual capacity must be presumed to assert an official-capacity claim when the alleged conduct occurred within the course and scope of employment.
2. Whether sovereign immunity bars an intentional libel claim against a public official sued in his official capacity.
3. Whether the trial court properly denied Trew's motion to dismiss on sovereign-immunity grounds.

Disposition

reversed