GILLIAM V. PIKEVILLE UNITED METHODIST HOSPITAL OF KENTUCKY, INC.
TORTS – Defamation (elements of  compensable damage, failure to prove and summary judgment)

2004-CA-001573
PUBLISHED 
AFFIRMING (VANMETER)
DATE: 2/17/2006

Affirmed summary judgment to Pikeville United Methodist Hospital of Kentucky, Inc. (Hospital) and Danny Briscoe dismissing dismissed Gilliam’s complaint, which alleged that appellees made defamatory statements about him and breached a contractual duty of confidentiality by causing his personnel and employment records to be made public and cast in a false light because Gilliam could not establish damages in connection with the defamatory statements.

As Gilliam failed to identify compensable damages in his deposition testimony, he failed to meet this element of his defamation case. Furthermore, Gilliam’s failure to set forth his damages during his deposition constitutes a judicial admission which forecloses further dispute on the issue.

SEEKentucky Employment Law Blog Note addressing this decision – Ky. COA Affirms Dismissal Of Defamation Claim That Arose In The Context Of A Labor Dispute.