Lawsuit against Grisham for playing real-life detective

Washington: He's a lawyer. He's a best-selling author. Now he's The Client.

The Virginia Supreme Court on Friday approved a lawsuit against John Grisham for his actions in a real-life whodunit.

Grisham's son attended the private St Anne's-Belfield School, where he played baseball for Alan Swanson, the head coach.

In 1996, Swanson's wife, Donna Swanson, began receiving anonymous letters, which included allegations that her husband was cheating on her, according to the ruling. Grisham also received an anonymous letter. In 1998, according to the lawsuit, "Grisham was intrigued by the idea of trying to 'get to the bottom' of who was writing them, and he decided to play amateur detective", said the lawsuit.

Grisham and the Swansons targeted another St Anne's parent, Katharine Almy of Charlottesville. The lawsuit states that Almy provided handwriting samples to an examiner, who cleared her but was horrified that she was being investigated.

In 2000, as the letters kept coming, Almy sued Grisham and the Swansons for intentional infliction of emotional distress. She withdrew the suit in 2003 but refiled it in 2004.

A year later, Albemarle County Circuit Court threw it out, saying the case had no merit. Almy appealed.

On Friday, the court ruled that the previous judge was wrong for judging the case on its merits. In a 6-1 ruling, the court reinstated Almy's lawsuit against Grisham and the Swansons.

The cliffhanger? The author of the letters remains a mystery.