or OPINION PER CURIAM: Plaintiff-appellant Brian Hugen appeals from the district court's summary judgment dismissal of his state law slander claim against defendants-appellees New England Retail Express ("NER") and David Jones. Finding no error in the district court's opinion, we affirm. NER entered into a contract with Haynes Furniture, Inc., whereby NER agreed to deliver furniture sold by Haynes to various customers. NER employed several independent contractors, including Hugen, to perform the actual delivery services for Haynes. These independent contractors in turn employed "helpers" to assist them. David Jones was the NER employee charged with supervising the independent contractors and their helpers. The district court concluded that Jones' statements met the requirements for the privilege because all of the participants at the meetings at which Jones spoke -- Jones, the independent contractors and their helpers -- had a common pecuniary interest in preventing theft from Haynes and other NER customers.
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