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performed the purported protected act. Therefore, Laramar’s liability for the habitability
defects at Premises and for wrongful endeavor to recover the Premises is established.”
We do not understand Moriarty’s argument to be that Laramar has no standing to
make the anti-SLAPP motion here, despite that it was not involved in the earlier unlawful
detainer action. Moriarty certainly did not make any such argument below. Thus, and
because the issue is not fully developed in the briefing, we choose not to address it, and
turn to the merits of Laramar’s appeal.
Anti-SLAPP Law and the Standard of Review
We recently explained the operation of section 425.16, in both the trial and
reviewing courts:
“Subdivision (b)(1) of section 425.16 provides that ‘[a] cause of action against a
person arising from any act of that person in furtherance of the person’s right of petition
or free speech under the United States Constitution or California Constitution in
connection with a public issue shall be subject to a special motion to strike, unless the
court determines that the plaintiff has established that there is a probability that the
plaintiff will prevail on the claim.’ Subdivision (e) elaborates the four types of acts
within the ambit of a SLAPP, including, as pertinent here, ‘(4) any other conduct in
furtherance of the exercise of the constitutional right of petition or the constitutional right
of free speech in connection with a public issue or an issue of public interest.’
“A two-step process is used for determining whether an action is a SLAPP. First,
the court decides whether the defendant has made a threshold showing that the
challenged cause of action is one arising from protected activity, that is, by demonstrating
that the facts underlying the plaintiff’s complaint fit one of the categories spelled out in
section 425.16, subdivision (e). If the court finds that such a showing has been made, it
must then determine the second step, whether the plaintiff has demonstrated a probability
of prevailing on the claim. [Citation.]
“ ‘The Legislature enacted section 425.16 to prevent and deter “lawsuits [referred
to as SLAPP’s] brought primarily to chill the valid exercise of the constitutional rights of
freedom of speech and petition for the redress of grievances.” (§ 425.16, subd. (a).)