"Someone Must Have Taken the Bar Exam for You" Was Just Insult, Not Libel
"[A]nyone who has used Facebook is aware that it is a platform that breeds spiteful and juvenile exchanges."
Libel
Moving to Unseal Material in Pennsylvania Sen. Douglas Mastriano's Lawsuit Related to His Ph.D. Thesis
Sen. Mastriano (who is running for reelection to the state senate, and who ran in 2022 for Governor) is suing for, among other things, libel—but trying to keep the allegedly libelous material under seal.
Calling Someone an "Amateur" May Sometimes Be Defamatory
“This Court rejects Defendants’ argument an ordinary person could find ‘amateur,’ in this circumstance, to refer to ‘one who engages in a pursuit, study, science, or sport as a pastime rather than a profession’ or a ‘devotee, [or] admirer,’ given the surrounding context and circumstance.”
Libel, Fire, Healing Chakras, and Real Housewives of New York
“The article also documents Plaintiff’s four failed attempts at appearing on the Real Housewives of New York, and the potentially circumstantial evidence that the fire was used as a publicity stunt as it occurred just one day prior to Plaintiff joining a talk show wherein she talked extensively about the fire.”
Journal of Free Speech Law: "Adding Injury to Insult: Kant on Defaming the Dead," by Prof. David Sussman
An article from the Defamation: Philosophical and Legal Perspectives symposium, sponsored by the Center for Legal Philosophy at UC Irvine.
Plaintiff Sufficiently Alleged Knowing/Reckless Falsehood in CNN Story About Evacuating Afghans During Withdrawal
"Young proffered CNN messages and emails that showed internal concern about the completeness and veracity of the reporting—the story is 'a mess,' 'incomplete,' not 'fleshed out for digital,' 'the story is 80% emotion, 20% obscured fact,' and 'full of holes like Swiss cheese.'"
Journal of Free Speech Law: "Fiction, Defamation, and Freedom of Speech," by Prof. Collin O'Neil
An article from the Defamation: Philosophical and Legal Perspectives symposium, sponsored by the Center for Legal Philosophy at UC Irvine.
Journal of Free Speech Law: "True Defamation," by Prof. Jeffrey S. Helmreich
An article from the Defamation: Philosophical and Legal Perspectives symposium, sponsored by the Center for Legal Philosophy at UC Irvine.
Plaintiff's Idaho Murder Libel Claim Beats Defendant's "Tarot Readings" and "Psychic Intuition"
"[T]he only support for Defendant's statements about Plaintiff is that Defendant's 'spiritual investigation' into the murders using 'intuitive tarot readings' led her to Plaintiff."
Journal of Free Speech Law: "Defamation, Presumed Damages, and Reputational Injury: A Legal and Philosophical Inquiry," by Prof. Benjamin C. Zipursky
An article from the Defamation: Philosophical and Legal Perspectives symposium, sponsored by the Center for Legal Philosophy at UC Irvine.
Journal of Free Speech Law: "Defamatory in Whose Eyes?," by Prof. Kenneth W. Simons
An article from the Defamation: Philosophical and Legal Perspectives symposium, sponsored by the Center for Legal Philosophy at UC Irvine.
"After Edokobi's Employees Left, Smith Cast 'Evil Curses' upon Edokobi's Life and Business"—But Not Libelous Ones
More usefully, the case is a reminder that insults and other expressions of opinion aren't libelous.
Court Declines to Dismiss Libel Suit by Anthropologist Accused of Mishandling Human Remains from Project MOVE Bombing
The case was brought by Dr. Janet Monge against the University of Pennsylvania.
"If He Did Not Want to Be Called a 'Rioter,' Plaintiff Should Not Have Admitted … to 'Participation in … [a] Riot'"
Plus, the significance of omitting "IDK."
Alleged "QAnon John"'s Libel Lawsuit Against Anti-Defamation League Can Go Forward
The court held that the ADL's claims were factual assertions, and not just opinions; whether they are false assertions, and whether plaintiff is a limited-purpose public figure (who would therefore have to show knowing or reckless falsehood) remains to be decided.
Court Upholds #TheyLied Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress Award Against Student Who Accused Professor of Sexual Assault,
but throws out a similar award against another professor who backed the student's allegations. (A jury had concluded the student's allegations were false and defamatory.)
No Sealing of Allegedly Defamatory Statements in Libel Lawsuit
"Dr. Morrison brought this lawsuit. He chose to challenge the accuracy of these statements in a public courtroom. If disclosing the allegedly-defamatory statements invades his privacy or causes him injury, it is solely the result of his own actions and decisions."
Pennsylvania Trial Court Rejects Pseudonymity in Defamation Suit Over Sexual Assault Allegations
(as well as other allegations).
Missouri Government Agency Threatening to Sue Critic for Libel
But lawsuits for libeling the government do not "have any place in the American system of jurisprudence."
Florida Court Reverses Anti-Libel Injunction Entered During Discovery Dispute
Florida appellate courts are pretty good about reversing unconstitutional injunctions against speech (though Florida trial courts seem to be pretty willing to enter such injunctions).
#TheyLied Libel Lawsuit Over Ex-Student's Allegations of Rape Can Go Forward,
and so can the professor's Title VII and Title IX discrimination claims against the university.
Trump Files Defamation Lawsuit Against ABC for Saying He Was Found Liable for Rape Instead of Sexual Assault
The defamation lawsuit is the latest in Trump's campaign of lawfare against media outlets, but all of those suits have failed so far.
Your Local DMV May Have No Sense of Humor
Censorship of 2,872 Pennsylvania license plates raises free speech questions.
#TheyLied Libel Case, Stemming from Allegations of "Mental and Physical Abuse[]" by Fellow High School Student, Can Go Forward
The culture of public accusation and shaming, in high school (and stemming from a relationship that apparently happened when the accuser and accused were sophomores).
Don't Pick Out That Corvette Yet: Prosecutor Loses Libel Lawsuit Against Newspaper
What does it mean, in context, to say that a prosecutor "assisted with the prosecution" of someone who has been exonerated?
If Lawyer Representing Himself Is "Unable to Keep His Personal Feelings out of His Pleadings and the Way He Litigates This Case,"
"he might want to consider hiring an attorney to represent him in this case."
Climate Scientist Michael Mann Wins Defamation Suit Against Mark Steyn and Rand Simberg
The jury found no real damages, but gave a sizeable punitive award that could be challenged on appeal.
