Dismissal of Zia Chishti’s defamation case upheld on appeal. A U.S. federal appeals court has brought further clarity to a years-long legal dispute involving former Afiniti chief executive Zia Chishti, ruling that his defamation lawsuit against former employee Tatiana Spottiswoode and her legal representatives will remain dismissed.
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The decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit affirms an earlier judgment by the U.S. District Court, meaning the case cannot proceed on the claims presented by Chishti. In doing so, the appellate court agreed that the challenged statements were protected under U.S. law and did not give rise to legally actionable defamation.
The lawsuit was filed after Spottiswoode testified before the U.S. House Judiciary Committee in 2021 and later spoke publicly about allegations that had previously been examined during a confidential arbitration in 2019. Chishti maintained that those statements were false and breached confidentiality obligations arising from the arbitration.
Among the issues raised on appeal was Chishti’s reliance on a settlement reached with The Telegraph in the United Kingdom. The appeals court concluded that the settlement did not alter the findings of the earlier arbitration or affect the legal analysis supporting dismissal of the lawsuit.
The appellate judges also upheld the district court’s reasoning that the complaint failed to establish a legally sustainable defamation claim, leaving no basis to reinstate the proceedings.
The latest ruling represents the most recent judicial decision in litigation that has spanned several years and multiple legal forums. While it does not revisit the underlying arbitration itself, it leaves undisturbed the district court’s dismissal of Chishti’s defamation claims and closes the appeal unless further review is sought.
