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JVC Secures Appellate Victory Affirming Five-Year Dismissal for Bank of Hope
September 2026 - William Um, Jordyn Ostroff, and Amanda Harris secured an appellate victory for long time JVC client, Bank of Hope, when the California Court of Appeal affirmed the dismissal of a lawsuit that plaintiffs failed to bring to trial within five years, as required by California’s mandatory dismissal statute. Plaintiffs argued on appeal that the deadline had been tolled because bringing the case to trial was impracticable, that the parties had orally agreed to extend the deadline by accepting a post-deadline trial date, and that Defendants’ continued participation in the litigation estopped them from seeking dismissal. The Court of Appeal rejected each argument, holding that plaintiffs failed to exercise reasonable diligence—including by never bringing the five-year deadline to the trial court’s attention or moving to advance the trial date—and that Defendants’ mere failure to object to the trial date did not constitute an agreement to extend the deadline or a basis for estoppel. This decision is another example of the value that experienced trial attorneys at JVC bring to its clients.
Schafer Curates Rare Book Exhibit on Press Freedom at Yale Law School
August 2026 - Matt Schafer curated "The Choicest Privilege": Press Freedom from Magna Charta to the Early Federal Period, on view at Yale Law School's Lillian Goldman Law Library on view through December 12, 2026. The works on display show how press freedom developed in the early colonial and federal periods during the earliest days of journalism in America. This history, Schafer argues, can be used to make the case in litigation for broader constitutional protections for newsgathering and press freedom generally.
Jassy Vick Carolan Wins Anti-SLAPP Motion for Nexstar
July 2026 - Jordyn Ostroff, Jean-Paul Jassy, and Amanda Harris secured an anti-SLAPP victory for Nexstar Media Group in a lawsuit brought by Plaintiff Jane Doe arising from Nexstar's 2023 reporting on Doe's high-profile landlord-tenant dispute in connection with her stay in a Los Angeles-area Airbnb. Two years later, Doe claimed that Nexstar's reporting, which referenced Doe's real name and image, violated California's protections for individuals enrolled in the Safe at Home program and inflicted emotional distress. The court concluded that the entire complaint against Nexstar was barred by California's fair and true report privilege, and granted Nexstar's anti-SLAPP motion in full.
Schafer Proposes the DETER Act to Curb Retaliatory Libel Suits by Federal Officials
July 2026 - At the Knight First Amendment Institute's convening on press freedom, Matt Schafer proposed the Defending Expression Against Threats of Executive Retaliation (DETER) Act. The proposed law responds to defamation suits filed by high-ranking, Executive Branch officials over reporting about their official conduct, offering a threshold immunity to the press modeled on the century-old rule against libel-on-government suits. "The lawsuit doesn't have to win to work," Schafer said. "The cost of defending it is the punishment. That's what the DETER Act is designed to stop." The convening is a part of an efforts across the industry to shore up press freedom after the federal government's unprecedented attacks on the press.
Schafer Defends New York Times v. Sullivan at First Amendment Salon in Washington, D.C.
June 2026 - Matthew L. Schafer took part in a First Amendment Salon in Washington, D.C., where he defended New York Times v. Sullivan, the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that established the "actual malice" standard. Schafer exchanged views with Professor Carson Holloway, author of the book No Liberty to Libel: The Constitutional Case Against New York Times v. Sullivan. Drawing on his scholarship on the history of press freedom—including his article In Defense: New York Times v. Sullivan—Schafer argued for the continued vitality of Sullivan and the constitutional protections it affords journalists and the public.
Jassy Speaks at Press Clause Coalition Event Sponsored by Yale and NY City Bar
May 2026 - Jean-Paul Jassy spoke in New York about using the First Amendment's Press Clause to protect journalists at an event called the "Launch of the Press Clause Coalition" sponsored the Yale Law School Press Clause Project and the Communications and Media Law Committee of the New York City Bar Association. The event, which headlined a speech by New York Times Publisher A.G. Sulzberger, was covered by the New York Times and CNN. |
