US judge narrows Bacon-Nygård defamation case tied to Bahamas fire

By Joseph Ax
NEW YORK, July 31 (Reuters) - A New York judge has narrowed
the scope of a $100 million defamation lawsuit filed by
billionaire hedge fund manager Louis Bacon against Canadian
fashion designer Peter Nygård, part of a bitter dispute over
neighboring properties they own in the Bahamas.
In a decision made public on Friday, Justice Cynthia Kern in
State Supreme Court in Manhattan dismissed 105 of the 135
allegedly defamatory statements that formed the basis for
Bacon's $100 million lawsuit in January, accusing Nygård of
orchestrating an "obsessive" smear campaign.
Bacon, the founder of Moore Capital Management, can continue
to pursue the remaining defamation claims.
Nygård, for his part, filed a $50 million countersuit in
April accusing Bacon of a "vendetta" against him, including
harassment and frivolous litigation. Bacon's lawyers have asked
Kern to throw out Nygård's claims.
Each man has denied the other's allegations.
The fight stems from Bacon's opposition to Nygård's plans to
rebuild his estate in their gated Bahamas community, following a
2009 fire. Bacon has said the work could harm the environment.
In his countersuit, Nygård claimed that Bacon may have
prompted a groundskeeper to set the fire. Bacon has denied any
role in the fire.
Bacon's lawsuit accused Nygård of falsely linking him to
drug smuggling, insider trading and the Ku Klux Klan.
In a decision dated July 28, Kern said many of the
purportedly defamatory statements were made more than one year
before the lawsuit was filed, thus exceeding the state's statute
of limitations.
"The argument by Bacon that he could not bring the present
action against defendants until at least 2014 because he only
had suspicions and did not have any hard proof is without
basis," Kern wrote.
Bacon had claimed that Nygård concealed his role in the
alleged harassment, making it impossible to sue sooner.
In a statement, Nygård's lawyer Aaron Marks called the
decision a "significant victory" and added, "Bacon's remaining
claims in the case are frivolous and we expect that they will be
similarly disposed."
Orin Snyder, a lawyer for Bacon, said in a statement that
while he disagreed with the dismissal of some claims, "we are
confident that, when Mr. Nygård's egregious conduct is exposed
in court, we will prevail."
The case is Bacon v Nygård et al, New York State Supreme
Court, New York County, No. 150400/2015.