The Volokh Conspiracy

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Free Speech

Libel Lawsuit Filed over Seduced: Inside the NXIVM Cult

|The Volokh Conspiracy |


The case in Eliot v. Lions Gate Entertainment (C.D. Cal.), filed by motivational speaker and author Marc Eliot. From the introduction:

[B]y misleading splicing of words, editing, and use of Plaintiff's images, Defendants insinuate that Plaintiff is dangerous, has been trained to kill, is capable of killing himself if told to, and condones sexual violence against women. Further, in the series Defendants equate Plaintiff to the likening of a rapist, an ISIS and Al Qaeda terrorist, a Nazi experimenter, and a murderer on command.

I don't know whether the lawsuit is well-founded, but the underlying story has been in the news, including as to odd legal procedural details, so I thought I'd note this latest twist.