Construction projects often involve a complex array of
contractors, subcontractors, banks, bonding agents, architects,
engineers and so on. With that many parties depending on each other
to complete a project, negative statements about the quality and
integrity of other peoples' work often arise. Such statements,
if false, may give rise to defamation claims. However, even a false
statement may be protected from liability by a "common
interest" privilege. Two recent Massachusetts cases address
what kinds of statements qualify for common interest privilege
protection in matters related to the construction industry.
Defamation and Qualified Privileges
The law of defamation tends to vary from state to state. In
Massachusetts, defamation is defined as the publication of a statement of
fact (i.e., not opinion) concerning the plaintiff that is both
false and capable of damaging the plaintiff's reputation. The
statement must be published with the requisite fault —
anywhere
