Online Defamation Court Cases Double in the Space of a YearTHE NUMBER of court cases brought by people who say they have been defamed online has more than doubled in a year, as social networks become prime ground for the spread of defamatory information.Hall, Richard...
“Following the dismissals of the Jankowicz, Bobulinski and now Epps cases, Fox News is pleased with these back-to-back decisions from federal courts preserving the press freedoms of the First Amendment,” the network said. Show commentsBoston...
Indeed, a large percentage of calls to our office involve divorce and child custody disputes. Perhaps because emotions run so high in such cases, the parties want to do everything possible to win the day. I often sense that the caller wants to file a defamation action to create leverage in...
in Schenk v. U.S. (1919): a restriction is legitimate only if the speech in question poses a “clear and present danger”—i.e., a risk or threat to safety or to other public interests that is serious and imminent. Many cases involving freedom of speech and of the press also have ...
illegal or unethical conduct. Generally, the statement must harm the reputation of the person, but in the case ofper sedefamation, damages will be presumed. This last point is very important, because if a plaintiff had to prove actual damage, the burden of proof in most cases would be near...
minorities in education, filing anamicus curiaebrief in the 1948 Supreme Court caseMcCollumv.Board of Educationarguing for the unconstitutionality of “released time” for religious instruction in public school classrooms. It likewise fought against quotas for Jewish students in college and university ...
In defamation per se cases, the jury can award whatever amount it decides is warranted–even if there is no evidence at all of actual damages–but if the award is especially unconscionable, the court can strike it down. Virginia Model Jury Instruction 37.105 (which applies in defamation cases...
Supreme Court precedent sets a high bar for defamation cases brought by public officials like Richer. He would have been required to prove not just that Lake’s statements were untrue but that she made them with “actual malice;" that is, knowing they were false or with reckless disregard fo...
“The jury considered and decided issues that are common to both cases — including whether Mr. Trump falsely accused Ms. Carroll of fabricating her sexual assault charge and, if that were so, that he did it with knowledge that this accu...
In most cases, it won’t be actionable to call for the resignation of a public official or to question that person’s ethics or professionalism. The First Amendment is intended to protect robust debate over the performance of government officials, and statements like these are generally considered...