方舟子的Blog

   
武汉华中科技大学同济医学院教授、纽约大学临床副教授肖传国于2006年12月5日向美国联邦纽约东区法庭指控新语丝网站在2006年9月7日刊登美国西北大学神经学教授饶毅向中国法庭出具的专家意见书《对肖传国起诉方舟子一案的意见书》一事损害其名誉，导致他没能当选中国科学院院士（按：肖落选院士一事发生于2005年10月），并索赔100万美元。新语丝社将积极应诉，并考虑提起反诉。欢迎在美的法律专业人士提供法律援助。

   
以下为肖传国递交的诉状。（方舟子声明：我是中国公民，不是肖传国诉状指称的“美国公民”。对肖传国诉状中的其他种种不实之辞，将在以后给法庭的答辩中一一指出）

CASE NUMBER CV 06 6438
Clerk: Robert C. Hernemann

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK

——————————————————X

CHUAN-GUO XIAO, Index No.

Plaintiff,

- against -   
COMPLAINT

YI RAO, SHIMIN FANG and

NEW THREADS CHINESE

CULTURAL SOCIETY, INC.

Defendants.

—————————————————–X

Nature of the Action

1. Plaintiff, Chuan-Guo Xiao, brings this action for defamation to
redress false written statements maliciously made and published by
defendants.  Plaintiff, a resident of
Brooklyn  is defamed in the article “My Opinions
On The Libel Suit Brought by Xiao Chuan-Guo Against Fang Shi-Min,”
(henceforth “My Opinions”) written by defendant YI RAO and
published on the internet by defendants SHIMIN FANG and NEW THREADS
CHINESE CULTURAL SOCIETY, INC., and thereafter and as a result
published by the print and internet editions of the People’s
Daily, a leading Chinese-language news source. 
The article is a sustained and malicious assault upon plaintiff’s
reputation, falsely and with malice claiming plaintiff has a “very
low level of academic achievement” and has failed to demonstrate
that “he really knows science at all,” plus other similar
statements.  The article goes on to state, falsely
and with malice, that Plaintiff is either mentally retarded or a
“psychopath.”  The author claims himself
qualified to make such judgments, since he is “very familiar with
the Chinese biomedical community,” has “in depth knowledge about
biomedical history and evolution in China,” is “well connected
within international neuroscience circle.”

2. The truth is that Chun-Guo Xiao is a highly-regarded academic
urologist who is internationally recognized for his pioneering work
related to bladder problems related to spinal cord injury, and has
pioneered a novel procedure for the rehabilitation of such
spinal-cord related bladder dysfunction.  This
novel procedure has enabled victims of such injury to void without
the aid of a catheter, thereby avoiding the serious risks of
infection associated with constant catheter use and thereby
increasing life expectancy.

3. Upon information and belief, defendants Yi Rao, Shimin Fang and
New Threads Chinese Cultural Society, Inc. knew all of the true
facts set forth in paragraph 2 above, yet they published the
defamation knowing it was untrue and without regard to its effect
on plaintiff.

4. As a result of these knowingly false assertions, plaintiff has
suffered injury to his personal and professional reputation, great
emotional and psychological distress, loss of business and career
opportunities, and specifically was denied an appointment to the
Chinese Academy of Science.  All defendants are
therefore jointly and severally liable for compensatory and
exemplary damages.

JURISDICTION AND VENUE

5. This Court has diversity jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §
1332(a)(2) in that Plaintiff is a citizen of China domiciled in
China, who resides in the State of New York as a lawful alien;
defendant Yi Rao is a United States Citizen domiciled in the State
of Illinois; defendant Shimin Fang is a United States Citizen
domiciled in the State of California; and defendant New Threads
Chinese Cultural Society, Inc. is a New York State corporation with
its principal place of business in New York State. The matter in
controversy exceeds, exclusive of interests and costs, the sum
specified by 28 U.S.C. § 1332.

6.  Venue is proper in this Court pursuant to 28
U.S.C. § 1391(a) because a substantial amount of the events giving
rise to the claim occurred in the Southern District of New
York.

THE PARTIES

Chun-Guo Xiao

7. Plaintiff, Chun-Guo Xiao, is a Clinical Associate Professor on
the faculty of New York University School of
Medicine.  He is a citizen of China, maintains his
domicile in China, and is an alien lawfully in this country,
residing in Brooklyn, County of Kings, State of New York..

8. Throughout his career of public service and private practice,
plaintiff has always developed an excellent reputation for
academic, scientific and medical achievement in his
profession.  Doctor Xiao is the only person in the
history of the American Urological Association to be the recipient
of the distinguished Jack Lapides award on two separate
occasions.  This award is one given by the
American Urological Association for outstanding work in the field
of Urology.

9. Plaintiff’s academic career, as well as his private medical
practice depend on his reputation for academic, scientific, and
medical achievement.

Yi Rao

10.  Defendant Yi Rao is a professor of neurology
at the North Western University School of Medicine, in
Illinois

11. Upon information and belief, defendant Yi Rao is the author of
“My Opinions.”

12. Defendant Yi Rao is a resident of Chicago,
Illinois.  He is a citizen of the United
States.

New Threads Chinese Cultural Society, Inc.

13. Upon information and belief, defendant New Threads Chinese
Cultural Society, Inc., is a New York not-for-profit corporation,
incorporated in Onandanga County, New York, and with its principal
place of business in Liverpool, Onandanga County, New York. One of
its primary business operations is the publication of New Threads
magazine, a daily internet magazine.  The
defendant corporation and the magazine are operated by defendant
Shimin Fang, who is also its President and Director of the
defendant corporation.  The defendant corporation
is known for sensationalist journalism, particularly muckraking
articles assaulting the reputations of prominent Chinese
citizens.

14. Defendant New Threads Chinese Cultural Society, Inc. published
an online edition of the article “My Opinions” on or about
September 6, 2006, and has continued to publish the article online
thereafter.

Shimin Fang

15.  Defendant Shimin Fang is the President and
Director of defendant New Threads Chinese Cultural Society,
Inc.  On prior occasions, not directly the subject
of this lawsuit, defendant Shimin Fang wrote libelous claims about
plaintiff, which he and New Threads Chinese Cultural Society, Inc.
arranged to have published in the New Threads internet
magazine.  After plaintiff successfully sued
Shimin Fang for libel for these statements, Shimin Fang, in
retaliation and with malicious motives, arranged for the libelous
article “My Opinion,” ostensibly written by Yi Rao, to be
published by New Threads Chinese Cultural Society, Inc. and
elsewhere.

16.  Shimin Fang is a resident of the City of San
Diego, County of San Diego, State of California. 
He is a citizen of the United States.

The Untrue Statements in “My Opinions”Concerning Chun-Guo
Xiao

17. Defendant Yi Rao’s article, “My Opinion,” consists of a
sustained assault upon plaintiff’s reputation, wherein defendant
Yi Rao claims plaintiff has a “very low level of academic
achievement” and has failed to demonstrate that “he really knows
science at all” or is any better than “the students taught by my
students,” and that “[i]f he ever becomes an academician, he will
surely set the record for the lowest standing.” 
The article goes on to express defendant Yi Roa’s belief that
Plaintiff must be mentally defective.

18. Although Yi Roa, in his article, continually and in an
exaggerated tongue-in-cheek fashion, characterizes his defamatory
statements as “opinions,” this is little more than a legalistic
ploy, and evidently intended to be understood as such by the
readers.  The beginning of the article, Yi Roa
strains to characterize himself as a person with connections and
expertise within the international neuroscience community and the
Chinese biomedical community, so as to establish that he is
qualified to assess the academic reputation of Plaintiff, Chun-Guo
Xiao.

19.  An English Translation of “My Opinion” is
attached hereto as Exhibit A and incorporated herein by
reference.

20. The article “My Opinion,” in Chinese, continues to be
disseminated widely throughout the United States and in other
countries via the internet.

Defamation and Damages

21.  The statements referred to in paragraph 15
above, published by defendants of and concerning plaintiff, are
materially false and defamatory and impute to plaintiff general
professional and academic incompetence, total lack of fitness for
his profession, and even mental illness. Defendants published these
statements wantonly and recklessly, with reckless disregard for its
injurious effect upon plaintiff.

22. By reason of the above, plaintiff has suffered emotional
anguish, and been injured in his character and reputation in the
community, particularly in the Chinese-reading community, both
professionally and otherwise, to his damage in the sum of (i)
$500,000 in compensatory damages and (ii) $500,000 in exemplary
damages in an amount that is a sufficient percentage of defendants’
net worth to deter such conduct in the future.

First Cause of Action(Libel—Gross Irresponsibility as Against All
Defendants)

23.  Plaintiff hereby repeats and realleges
paragraphs 1 through 22 as if fully set forth herein.

24. In publishing the defamatory statements referred to in
paragraph 15, defendants acted in a grossly irresponsible manner
without due consideration for the standards of information
gathering and dissemination ordinarily followed by responsible
parties.

Second Cause of Action(Libel—Actual Malice as Against All
Defendants)

25. Plaintiff hereby repeats and realleges paragraph 1 through 22
as if fully set forth herein.

26. At the time the defendants published the defamatory statements
quoted in paragraph 15, they knew that they were false, or acted
with reckless disregard of whether they were true or not.

WHEREFORE, plaintiff, Chun-Guo Xiao:

1. demands judgment against all defendants in an amount not less
than $500,000, together with interest and the costs and
disbursements of this action, reasonable attorneys’ fees, and
punitive damages in an amount not less than $500,000 or in an
amount that is sufficient as a percentage of defendants’ net worth
to deter such conduct in the futures; and

2. requests such other and further relief as this Court may deem
just and proper.

Dated: New York, New York

November ___, 2006

______________________________

James B. LeBow

Attorney for Plaintiff

350 Fifth Avenue, Suite 4710

New York, New York

(212) 868-3311