Chapter 6 Libel Defenses and Damages INTRODUCTION Not only can a libel defense protect a defendant from a successful suit it can also stop a plaintiff s case quickly saving the publication or broadcasting outlet time and money Citing an appropriate defense a defendant can ask a judge to dismiss a case even before a hearing is held Such a dismissal is called a summary judgment They judge may issue such a ruling if he or she does not think the plaintiff can prove what is required or believes the defendant had a legal right a defense to publish or broadcast the defamatory material SUMMARY JUDGMENT STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS The summary judgment is a best friend for a mass media libel defendant About of media requests for a summary judgment are granted by the courts With a summary judgment the case ends without a trial saving money and avoiding the press to face a jury Summary judgment A judgment granted to a party in a lawsuit when the pleadings and other materials in the case disclose no material issue of fact between the parties making it possible for the case to be decided on the basis of the law by the court A summary judgment avoids a costly jury trial After plaintiffs have made their initial written allegations to the court but before the trial begins the defendants can argue that the lawsuit should be dismissed either because the plaintiff has failed to establish what is necessary to sustain the libel suit publication identification defamation falsity and the requisite level of fault or because there is a legal defense that blocks a successful lawsuit At this point the court is obligated to look at the plaintiff s allegation in the most favorable possible way If there is any dispute regarding the facts it must be for now resolved in favor of plaintiff After considering these factors if the court determines that a reasonable juror acting reasonably could not find for the plaintiff then the motion for summary judgment will be granted Note a plaintiff can also ask for a summary judgment arguing there is no possible way a juror could find for the defendant The loser of a summary judgment can appeal The Supreme Court has given both trial and appellate courts wide latitude in granting summary judgments in libel cases especially in suits brought by public persons Federal courts must grant a summary judgment in favor of the media defendants in cases involving actual malice unless the plaintiffs can demonstrate that they will be able to offer a jury clear and convincing evidence of actual malice STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS Prosecution for most crimes except homicide and kidnapping must be started within a specified period of time Statute of limitations A law that requires that a legal action must begin within a specified period of time usually one to three years for a civil case after the legal wrong was committed The duration of the statute of limitations for libel actions differs from state to state varying from one to three years Florida is two years In most states the duration is one to two years which means a libel suit must be started within one or two years following the date of publication of the offending material Courts have to decide what is the date of publication for the various mass media The consensus is as follows Newspapers it is the date that appears on the newspaper Radio and television the date on which the material is broadcast or telecast Magazines the date on which the magazine is distributed to a substantial portion of the public regardless of the date printed on the cover of the magazine Internet the date the material is posted on the Web If the material is altered or revised before it is republished the statute of limitations is restarted Rebroadcast of defamatory material on radio or television is generally considered a new publication since it was intended to reach a new audience and therefore generates a new opportunity for injury Jurisdiction It is possible for a plaintiff who has not filed a libel suit within the statute of limitations in his or her home state to file an action in another state that has a longer statute of limitations as long as libel has been circulated in this other state Keeton v Hustler Ruling that the state may rightly employ its libel laws to discourage the deception of its citizens and that the state may extend its concern to the injury that in state libel causes to a nonresident as well Calder v Jones Ruling that an individual in one state need not go to another state to seek redress from persons who though remaining that other state knowingly cause the injury in their state The primary negative effect of the libel was in their state The Supreme Court ruled that California courts could exercise jurisdiction over journalists who resided in Florida because the article concerned California activities of a California resident and was published in a national publication that had a large circulation in California These two Supreme Court rulings stand for the proposition that publishers may be sued in any jurisdiction in which they distribute even a relatively small portion of their publication even if the plaintiff does not reside in that jurisdiction Jurisdiction and the Internet Broadly or narrowly the Calder effects test is applied Where the plaintiff lives where the defendant resides what the defendant intended at whom the article was aimed and what the article was about are all factors courts raise TRUTH Truth is a defense and is the legal opposite of falsity and one the five items a plaintiff must prove in a libel suit Truth privileged communication fair comment consent and right of reply all work to protect the libel defendant The application of each of these defenses in a particular case is determined by the facts in the case what the story is about how the information was gained and the manner in which it was published When a private person plaintiff sues for a libelous statement that does not focus on something of public concern and therefore does not have to show the falsity of the matter as part of proving negligence the libel defendant can escape liability in the case by showing the defamatory matter is true But the defendant carries the burden of proof truth becomes a defense To prove falsity the defendant must show that the allegations are substantially true Extraneous errors will not destroy the defense PRIVILEGED COMMUNICATIONS The United States values robust debate as one means of discovering the truths essential to building
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