U.S. Court Rules for Agility in KGL Defamation Case

Pennsylvania Court Affirms 2018 Ruling for Agility

KUWAIT – August 6, 2019 – A state court in the United States last week upheld a lower court ruling in favor of Agility in a case that arose after a whistleblower letter informed the U.S. government of business relationships that existed between KGL and state-owned Iranian entities.

The Pennsylvania Superior Court denied KGL’s appeal of a lower court’s summary judgment in favor of Agility in a defamation lawsuit that was brought by KGL in 2012. Both companies are logistics services providers holding U.S. government contracts.

In affirming the dismissal, the Superior Court recognized the trial court’s conclusion that “there was no genuine issue of material fact that the factual assertions…relating to KGL’s ties with Iranian entities were substantially true.”

The decision by the Pennsylvania Superior Court is victory for whistleblower rights and for transparency in government contracting.

The Superior Court affirmed the lower court’s findings that letters sent by Agility to various U.S. government agencies and offices dealt with matters of public concern and contained protected political speech, as well as information about KGL’s relationship with Iranian entities that was generally not in dispute.

The original trial court dismissed KGL’s claim in 2018 after ruling that KGL failed to show that it had suffered harm as a result of Agility’s actions.