Realtor terminated over yard sign, five years later reaches mediation

South Park's edgy depiction of the Prophet Mohammed in a bear costume.

A five year fight

In 2006, Realtor John Caffery who was with RE/MAX at the time, chose to protest the national media’s “weak” handling of the Danish cartoon depicting the Prophet Mohammed which was considered anti-Muslim.

The cartoon was not featured in American publications but the riots over the cartoon were which Caffery felt was cowardly. He chose to feature a Muslim cartoon sign in his front yard as a means to show his community that the international violence was over a cartoon.

Allegedly, Caffery used RE/MAX stationery to send customers letters about his opinion on the Danish cartoon situation and espoused his religious and political beliefs as well as referencing in his yard sign that he is a Realtor.

RE/MAX responds

RE/MAX of Texas caught wind of the situation and sent a letter to RE/MAX of Beaumont where Caffery was licensed, relaying their position on Caffery’s behavior. “This radical behavior is a reflection on all RE/MAX offices in our area and we are extremely concerned.”

Shortly after the letter was received, Caffery’s contract with RE/MAX was terminated.

Caffery filed a libel suit against RE/MAX of Beaumont and RE/MAX of Texas in March 2007 claiming the letter from the company harmed his reputation, was libelous and damaged his good reputation. Caffery’s suit claimed the termination violated his contract with RE/MAX.

Court documents surfaced stating that Caffery and RE/MAX are in mediation this week and if a settlement is not reached, they will go to trial on May 12. At this time, the court docked does not reflect this case on the schedule.