Irish Rover Requests Attorney's Fees for Dismissed Defamation Suit Brought by Pro- Abortion Rights Notre Dame Professor

On Friday, September 19, The Irish Rover, an independent, non-profit, student publication “devoted to preserving the Catholic identity of Notre Dame,” asked a court to force Dr. Tamara Kay, a professor at Notre Dame, to pay $244,000 in legal fees for a frivolous defamation suit she brought and lost against The Irish Rover.

In June, the Indiana Supreme Court denied Dr. Kay's last attempt to appeal the loss in her defamation suit against The Irish Rover. Indiana has an “Anti-SLAPP” law which protects someone exercising their right of free speech against a frivolous suit by dismissing the case. The Anti-SLAPP law also requires the person who filed the meritless suit to pay the attorney's fees for the defendant. A state court in South Bend dismissed Dr. Kay's lawsuit in January 2024, a state appeals court upheld the dismissal, and the Indiana Supreme Court has denied further appeal. Now, Dr. Kay will be obligated to pay The Irish Rover's attorney's fees.

The Irish Rover published two articles about Dr. Kay, each of which accurately reported on her pro-abortion access public statements and actions following the US Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade, and the subsequent passage of Indiana's abortion law.

Dr. Kay posted a sign on her Notre Dame office door which stated, “This is a SAFE SPACE to get help and information on ALL Healthcare issues and access— confidentially with care and compassion.” Her twitter account regularly shared information supporting her pro-abortion stance—including information about “Plan C Pills” (a common term for pills used to induce abortion, often at home).

The court found that “healthcare” in this context referred to access to abortion services and concluded The Irish Rover's reporting on Dr. Kay's pro-abortion activities and speeches was accurate and lawful.

“Indiana's Anti-SLAPP law deters meritless cases attacking speech in connection with a public issue by allowing the accused to recoup their attorney fees from the people bringing these types of cases,” stated James Bopp, Jr., of The Bopp Law Firm, PC, lead counsel for the Irish Rover. “It shocked me that a pro-abortion professor would bring a frivolous defamation law suit against a student-run newspaper, just to try to shut them up. My firm concentrates on defending First Amendment rights, and we were happy to defend The Irish Rover's right to free speech in this case.”