Torts Keyed to Epstein
Dun & Bradstreet, Inc. v. Greenmoss Builders, Inc
Facts
Petitioner sent a credit report to five subscribers, indicating that Respondent had filed a voluntary petition for bankruptcy. The report was false, the result of the Petitioner’s use of a 17-year-old high school student to review the bankruptcy proceedings. Respondent was actually in good credit standing, but one of its employees had, indeed, filed bankruptcy. When respondent learned of the error, it called Petitioner, explained the error, and asked for a correction. Petitioner sent out a notice of the mistake, but refused to disclose its subscribers, and Respondent brought suit for liable. Respondent was awarded $50,000.00 in damages, and $300,000.00 in punitive damages. The trial court granted a new trial, but Respondent appealed to the Supreme Court of Vermont, which reinstated the verdict, maintaining that the constitutional requirements for a suit for libel did not apply to a non-media defendant. The Supreme Court of the United States granted certiorari.
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