OMAHA – A jury has ruled that the Nebraska Republican Party defamed one of its own candidates during a contentious legislative race five years ago, and it must pay her $500,000.
On Friday, a Lancaster County jury ruled in favour of Janet Palmtag’s defamation lawsuit against the party. Palmtag sued after the Nebraska GOP sent out campaign mailers in October 2020 falsely claiming she had been charged with mishandling business trust accounts and had lost her Iowa real estate license.
Palmtag, a lifelong Republican, was challenging fellow Republican and then-state Sen. Julie Slama of Peru, who had been appointed and supported by former Republican Gov. Pete Ricketts.
The race highlighted a growing schism within the state GOP, particularly between Ricketts’ supporters and those of his predecessor, Republican Gov. Dave Heineman, who supported Palmtag in the legislative race.
The party’s mailers, which were sent to approximately 3,200 registered voter households, stated that Palmtag had “broken the law and lost her real estate licence,” and that her licence had been “revoked.” The mailers also called Palmtag “too irresponsible to keep her licence.”
The mailers grossly misrepresented a 2018 disciplinary case in Iowa that found Palmtag’s real estate brokerage firm liable for improperly transferring funds from an Iowa account to a Nebraska one.
It was not Palmtag, but another real estate agent from the same firm, who had made the improper transaction. The company paid a $500 fine for the oversight.
Two years later, Palmtag canceled her Iowa real estate license, citing a lack of business for her firm there. The decision was unrelated to the disciplinary case, she stated.
Palmtag requested corrections to the mailers, but the state party refused. She filed suit after losing the race to Slama, seeking more than $4 million.
A judge initially dismissed Palmtag’s case, but after she appealed, the Nebraska Supreme Court ruled last year that a jury should decide whether she was defamed.
Palmtag, who left the Republican Party after the dispute, claimed that the campaign attack had not only cost her the race, but also harmed her business and personal life. The jury agreed, awarding $500,000 — a rare victory in a defamation case involving politicians, who are frequently portrayed as public figures and fair game in political attacks.
Palmtag’s attorney, David Domina, has been a trial lawyer in Nebraska for 50 years and says he has only seen a few defamation cases that resulted in significant awards for the plaintiff.
“I think it is it is about as scarce as hen’s teeth,” Domina told me.
The Nebraska GOP has 30 days to decide whether to appeal the jury’s decision, and another 10 days to file for a new trial. After that, “Janet could start collection procedures,” Domina said.
Nebraska GOP Chair Mary Jane Truemper, who was elected to the position last month, said Monday that the party is “in the investigative phase right now” of deciding whether to appeal.