TEST BREAKDOWN 20 QS FROM CH 4 20 QS FROM CH 7 20 QS FROM CH 5 6 8 CHAPTER 4 I The Libel Landscape A Time and Money nature of libel law Protracted litigation is always a threat in defamation action because of the complex Defense lawyers profit from lengthy cases with many meetings To be successful libel cases require the work of talented attorneys because libel is very complex in comparison to other types of suits Lots of suits are settled out of court B Damages Sought and Won Damage claims that are incredibly high never awarded but lawsuits must be defended properly Claims are sometimes outrageous and occasionally damage awards are extremely high and have little to do with the harm caused by the defamation C Libel Law Complications Likelihood of defamatory material published is increasingly high given the volume of words and images in the media The time traditional media used to have to check sources is no longer possible Decisions regarding the liability inherent in publishing a story has been compressed Libel is the most tangled areas of US law It is based on common law but infused with statutory and constitutional elements Mistakes are often made because the law is complex Important libel defenses are anchored in the 1st amendment as it is easier to comprehend damage to a person s reputation than the theoretical value inherent in freedom of the press Media is not held in high regard so libel trial could become opportunity for juror to express frustrations with the press and award damages to plaintiff Going to trial is not a good strategy D The Lawsuit as a Weapon Typical libel suit the injured party plaintiff initiates a lawsuit to Repair the damage to an injured reputation or Collect money damages for to compensate for harm done to reputation Something that lowers the parties esteem in the community Last quarter of a century different kind of libel action Plaintiff interested in preventing publication of further hurtful comments rather than damages SLAPP suits Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation Used to block the defendant from publishing further harmful comments Not important for plaintiff to win these cases Most don t expect to but rather hope to silence critics by forcing them to mount Legal system devised means to thwart such lawsuits by passing laws that permit a court to expedite a judicial review of plaintiff s allegations defense Anti SLAPP statutes Also called Citizen Participation Acts Permit defendant to ask a judge to dismiss the complaint immediately Statutes vary in details but all require judge to take 2 step examination of complaint Defendant must convince the court the challenged activity arose from a constitutionally protected activity focused on a matter of public interested by using 1st amendment rights to establish that it is a legally sufficient claim If activity is protected the judge will dismiss the claim About of states have such laws with a few others adopting processes to protect against such suits II Law of Defamation The law of defamation was an attempt by government to establish a forum for persons involved in a dispute brought about by an insult or defamatory remark This chapter focuses on libel and public communications material that is published broadcasted through mass media to include advertising company magazines the Internet etc Since the material is considered to be public concern courts treat them differently from non media defendants It must be remembered that libel law is essentially state law with important libel law variations from state to state Law includes both libel and slander which are treated similarly today unlike it was in the past The advent of radio TV and other electronic media forced changes to the law because spoken communication could be recorded and retained making slander s impact just as great as libel A more meaningful distinction today is between published communication and interpersonal communication All published communication is considered libel A Libel written defamation B Slander oral defamation III Elements of Libel scorn Elements of Defamation Defamation is any communication that holds a person up to contempt hatred ridicule or Defamation is a communication that damages the reputation of a person but not necessarily the individual s character To be actionable defamation the words must actually damage a reputation There must be proof offered that the individual s reputation was harmed At least a significant minority of the community must believe the plaintiff s reputation has been damaged but the minority must not be an unrepresentative minority A Character vs Reputation Character what you are Reputation what people think you are Reputation is what the law protects i e pleading a loss of self esteem is not sufficient to win damages in a libel suit Libel proof elusive task Proof of damage especially to something as amorphous as a reputation is an Simply having a bad reputation may not be sufficient to earn label of libel proof Most common variety of libel proof plaintiffs tend to be convicted criminals EX If Ted Bundy were to rob a bank his reputation would not be worsened because he was already charger for rape murder A significant minority must agree that the Plaintiff s reputation has been harmed damaged by the comment s B Plaintiff must prove 1 The libel was published 2 Words were of and concerning plaintiff 3 Material is defamatory 4 Material is false 5 Defendant was at fault 6 Harm He added this 6th one himself Key to understanding any lawsuit is to understand concept of the burden of proof which falls to the plaintiff in libel cases Plaintiff must provide sufficient evidence by establishing these five separate elements in order to convince the judge or jury C Publication Definition under the law it means that one person in addition to the source of the libel and the person who is defamed sees or hears the defamatory material or the court will not allow the suit to proceed Before the law recognizes a statement as civil libel the statement must be Republication can also result in a successful lawsuit One who repeats libel is subject to the same liability as one who published it published originally Reporters must be careful when labeling and cannot republish libelous remarks with the justification that it is a quote Publishers and vendors One who only delivers or transmits defamatory matter published by a third party is subject to liability but only if he knows or has a reason to know of
View Full Document
Unlocking...