Political Ads, Free Speech, and Tortious Interference with Contracts

An interesting recent case out of Texas, Deuell v. Texas Right to Life Committee, Inc., No. 01-15-00617-CV (behind paywall), deals with political advertisements, cease-and-desist letters, First Amendment free speech rights, and yes, contract. 

In the case, Deuell was a candidate for state senate. Texas Right to Life Committee (TRLC) ran some radio ads stating, among other things, “Bob Deuell sponsored a bill to give even more power to . . .  hospital panels over life and death for our ailing family members. Bob Deuell turned his back on life and on disabled patients.” Deuell’s lawyers sent cease-and-desist letters to the radio stations stating that the ads were defamatory and “respectfully demand[ing]” that the radio stations cease airing the ads. The radio stations, upon receipt of the letters, contacted TRLC and told it they were suspending the ads. TRLC then produced a new advertisement that the radio stations found acceptable to air, and also contracted “for additional airtime to compensate for the lost advertising time.” TRLC then sued Deuell for tortious interference with contract and sought recovery of the amount it expended to produce the new ad and buy more airtime. Deuell moved to dismiss, arguing that the Texas Citizens Participation Act (TCPA) protected his cease-and-desist letter as free speech and that TRLC’s allegations were not sufficient to overcome this. 

The court disagreed and denied the motion to dismiss. The court found that TRLC had adequately alleged the existence of contracts with the radio stations and that the cease and desist letters were “clear and specific evidence” (the relevant standard under the TCPA) that Deuell had intentionally and willfully interfered with these contracts that proximately caused TRLC to suffer the damages it alleged. The TCPA and Deuell’s free speech rights therefore did not operate to prohibit TRLC’s cause of action. 

Deuell did attempt to argue other things, including that TRLC’s ads were illegal under the Texas Election Code, rendering TRLC’s contracts with the radio stations to run the ads illegal contracts that could not result in tortious interference, as “a defendant cannot be held liable for tortiously interfering with an illegal contract.” The court concluded, however, that there was no basis for declaring the contract illegal because the section of the Texas Election Code at issue had actually been declared unconstitutional.

There was a dissent in this case that would have held that Deuell’s cease-and-desist letter implicated free speech rights under the TCPA and that TRLC did not provide the “clear and specific evidence” that would permit its case to survive in the face of those free speech implications.