Oprah Winfrey is headed to court despite efforts to stop a legal action brought against her. On March 29th Oprah will head to Philadelphia to stand trial. She is being sued for defamation, invasion of privacy and emotional distress, all stemming from the sexual abuse scandal that occurred at the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls back in 2007.
Numvoyo Mzamane, former headmistress of the school, claims that comments that Oprah made during the allegations against the school, have significantly affected her life. Oprah was quoted as saying she had lost confidence in Mzamane’s ability to run the school and although Mzamane was never charged with the crime, she was let go as headmistress of the school and her reputation has been badly tainted.
Mzamane may have a leg to stand on because whether or not Oprah meant any harm is irrelevant, Oprah is extremely powerful and her opinion is well respected. For her to insinuate wrongdoing by Mzamane has cast a bad light and ruined her career.
Oprah was previously dragged into court in 1999 when a group of Texas cattlemen sued her for defamation after she bad mouthed eating beef during the outbreak of mad cow disease. She and a battalion of lawyers were victorious in that case. It should be interesting to see if the most influential woman in the world can be victorious again.
Who can forget how Oprah stole every ounce of credibility from author James Frey when she had him back on her show to admit that “A Million Little Pieces” was fabricated? Oprah is a very powerful woman and as much as we love her, with power comes responsibility.
No worries about missing The Oprah Winfrey Show because the taping schedule has been modified so as not to interfere with the trial.
See more photos of Oprah below