Doctor Dodges Defamation Claim Over Fake Google, Yelp Reviews

A Florida plastic surgeon lost his lawsuit against a California dermatologist who allegedly paid others to post fake negative reviews on Google, Yelp, and other sites because most of the evidence was inadmissible, a federal trial court said.

Adam Rubinstein’s testimony about conversations he allegedly had with an Armenian man who alerted him that Simon Ourian hired people to post the reviews was inadmissible hearsay, as it relied on statements made outside the proceedings offered to prove the truth of the matter, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida said.

Screenshots of alleged online conversations between Ourian, ...