"In this diversity action for defamation, Anheuser-Busch, Inc. ("Busch") appeals from the district court's final judgment in favor of Irvin P. Philpot, III ("Philpot"). Busch, a Missouri corporation, filed the action against Philpot, a Florida citizen, alleging that Philpot had defamed Busch by maliciously telling hundreds of people, including influential business leaders, that Busch's dealings with its distributors amounted to criminal conduct. The complaint further alleged that this defamation had caused Busch at least $75,000 in damages.

2

Although an attorney initially appeared on Philpot's behalf, he withdrew on January 25, 2001, after moving to dismiss the case and responding to Busch's interrogatories and request for production of documents. Philpot thereafter remained without the assistance of counsel and failed to answer the complaint. The clerk of court, upon Busch's motion, accordingly entered a default against him on April 10, 2001. Thereafter, on May 1, 2001, Busch served Philpot with a request for admissions pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 36;¹ the pertinent Request for Admission stated that Busch had "suffered general damages in an amount not less than $2,000,000.00 as a result of the facts and circumstances set forth in the Complaint." After Philpot failed to respond to the Request for Admission, Busch moved for an entry of final default judgment and damages in the amount of $2,000,000. On September 7, 2001 the court entered a default judgment against Philpot and scheduled an evidentiary hearing to determine damages.

3

Busch took the position that Philpot's failure to respond to its Request for Admission conclusively established its entitlement to $2,000,000 in damages, but stated that if required, its expert witness would establish that Busch had suffered more than $2,000,000 in damages as a result of the defamation. The court ruled that under the circumstances presented, Busch would have to prove actual damages in order to prevail on its defamation claim. Accordingly, it proceeded with the evidentiary hearing pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 55(b)(2)."

Full Case

http://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F3/317/1264/484371/