Trump University's $1 million defamation counterclaim against ex-student survives anti-SLAPP motion

U.S. District Judge Irma E. Gonzalez denied Tarla Makaeff's special motion under California's anti-SLAPP statute to strike the defamation counterclaim Trump University had filed against her, ruling that Trump University was not a public figure and therefore did not need to prove she acted with actual malice. The counterclaim, filed May 26, 2010 in response to Makaeff's consumer class action, alleged that her complaints to her bank, the Better Business Bureau, government agencies, and internet forums caused damages 'amounting to or exceeding $1,000,000.' The ruling left the seven-figure claim pending against the lead fraud plaintiff for nearly four more years. The Ninth Circuit reversed on April 17, 2013, holding that Trump University was a limited-purpose public figure with respect to its advertising; on June 17, 2014 the district court struck the counterclaim under the anti-SLAPP statute, and on April 9, 2015 it ordered Trump University to pay Makaeff $790,093.40 in fees plus $8,695.81 in costs.