Luis Castillo Butters v. National Academy of Sciences

── Luis Castillo Butters v. National Academy of Sciences ── Court: Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit Date: May 22, 2026 Category: General United States Court of Appeals FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA CIRCUIT Argued October 6, 2025 Decided May 22, 2026 No. 24-7068 LUIS JAIME CASTILLO BUTTERS, APPELLANT v. NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES AND MARCIA MCNUTT, APPELLEES Consolidated with 25-7001 Appeals from the United States District Court for the District of Columbia (No. 1:22-cv-03054) Milton C. Johns argued the cause and filed the briefs for appellant. Karla Grossenbacher argued the cause and filed the brief for appellees. Before: HENDERSON and PAN, Circuit Judges, and GINSBURG, Senior Circuit Judge.  2 Opinion for the Court filed by Senior Circuit Judge GINSBURG. Opinion concurring in part and dissenting in part filed by Circuit Judge HENDERSON. GINSBURG, Senior Circuit Judge: This consolidated appeal involves claims of defamation, defamation by implication, and false light invasion of privacy relating to the rescission of Luis Jaime Castillo Butters’s membership in the National Academy of Sciences. Castillo brought these claims against the NAS and its president, Marcia McNutt, after they made statements concerning Castillo’s ouster. The district court dismissed all counts for failure to state a claim on which relief could be granted. We affirm the judgment of the district court with respect to the claim of defamation by implication. Because Castillo has alleged a false statement actionable under a defamation or a false light claim, however, we reverse the judgment as to those claims and remand the case to the district court for further proceedings. I. Background In reviewing the district court’s dismissal for failure to state a claim pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6), we accept as true the facts alleged by Castillo and view them in the light most favorable to him. Brown v. Whole Foods Mkt. Grp., Inc., 789 F.3d 146, 150 (D.C. Cir. 2015). A. Facts Castillo is a professor of archaeology at the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru. The NAS, a “private, nonprofit organization of the United States’ leading researchers,” elected Castillo to be an international member in 2012. First Am. Compl. ¶¶ 4, 12. In the Spring of 2021, a former student of  3 Castillo’s filed a complaint with the NAS. She publicly accused Castillo of sexual harassment in Peru and asked the NAS to expel him. The NAS rescinded Castillo’s membership on October 9, 2021. On the 13th, President McNutt informed NAS members by email that Castillo’s membership had been rescinded for a Code of Conduct violation. That email mentioned a password- protected website with further information for NAS members. On October 15, the NAS made the news of Castillo’s ouster publicly available on the organization’s website: “Luis Jaime Castillo Butters; NAS Code of Conduct violation, Section 4; membership rescinded.” First Am. Compl. ¶ 15, Ex. 1 at 1. Section 4 not only requires members to treat others with respect and collegiality but also broadly prohibits all forms of discrimination, harassment, and bullying. See id. Ex. 2 at 1; see also id. Ex. 2 at 2 n.iv (defining sexual harassment). That same day, ScienceInsider published a story about the revocation of Castillo’s NAS membership under the subheading: “Sexual harassment investigation triggered ejection of Luis Jaime Castillo Butters.” Sec. Am. Compl. Ex.  Although the October 13 communication is not attached as an exhibit to the First Amended Complaint, the defendants provided it in their reply memorandum in support of their motion to dismiss the original complaint, and Castillo confirmed the authenticity of the communication in his surreply. We have held that “documents — which were appended to [a] motio