Court Dismisses Ex-Staffer’s Suit Against AIPAC

The District of Columbia Court of Appeals today upheld the dismissal of the defamation suit against the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) by a former staffer, Steven Rosen, who was fired in the wake of his arrest on espionage charges in 2005, reported the Legal Times.

Although the Justice Department ultimately dropped the charges against Rosen and a colleague, Keith Weissman, Rosen sued the lobby charging statements by the group and its spokesman were defamatory.  Weissman was not involved in the lawsuit.

The three-judge appeals panel upheld the finding of Superior Court Judge Erik Christian that AIPAC's statements would not be "provably false," a standard essential for defamation claims.