The Arizona Court of Appeals has upheld a lower court’s ruling denying a client’s request for sanctions against her former attorney and a judge overseeing a defamation case stemming from her negative online review.

On Feb. 22, a Division One panel of the appeals court declined Linda L. Lamore’s request to sanction her former attorney, Jeffrey McKee of Davis McKee, for claims that he filed a frivolous lawsuit in bad faith against her following an online review of McKee’s services. The appellate court, among other decisions, further declined sanctions against Maricopa County Superior Court Judge James D. Smith, who oversaw the case.