NY’s top court rejects Dan Rather’s bid to appeal his breach of contract case against CBS
By APTuesday, January 12, 2010
NY court rejects Dan Rather’s appeal against CBS
ALBANY, N.Y. — New York’s top court has rejected Dan Rather’s bid to reinstate his $70 million breach-of-contract lawsuit against CBS Corp.
Rather’s motion was denied without comment Tuesday by the Court of Appeals.
CBS spokeswoman Shannon Jacobs says the network is pleased with the outcome. Rather calls the ruling “a grave miscarriage of justice.”
Rather sued CBS and its top executives in 2007, claiming he had been wrongfully removed from his “CBS Evening News” anchor post over a report that examined President George W. Bush’s military service.
In September, a five-member Appellate Division panel unanimously concluded there was no breach of contract because CBS still paid Rather his $6 million annual salary after the disputed 2004 broadcast.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York’s top court Tuesday rejected Dan Rather’s bid to reinstate his $70 million breach-of-contract lawsuit against CBS Corp.
Rather’s motion was denied without comment Tuesday by the Court of Appeals.
CBS spokeswoman Shannon Jacobs said the network was pleased with the outcome. Calls to Rather, who now produces an hourlong news program for cable channel HDNet, and to his lawyer Martin Gold were not immediately returned.
Rather sued CBS and its top executives in 2007, claiming he had been wrongfully removed from his “CBS Evening News” anchor post over a report that examined President George W. Bush’s military service.
His lawsuit claimed fraud and breach of fiduciary duty, as well as breach of contract.
A court threw out the fraud claims in September 2008. In September, a five-member Appellate Division panel unanimously concluded there was no breach of contract because CBS still paid Rather his $6 million annual salary after the disputed 2004 broadcast.
The dispute began with a piece Rather narrated for the now-defunct “60 Minutes II,” in which he reported that Bush got preferential treatment during his Vietnam War-era service in the Texas Air National Guard.
Rather cited new documents CBS had obtained, but the authenticity of the documents later came under attack.
Rather was dumped by CBS in June 2006 after 44 years with the network.
