Libel Flashcards
What landmark case revolutionized the law of libel? ( have to prove actual malice- knowledge of falsity or reckless disregard of truth)
1964 NY Times v. Sullivan
What are the 6 elements of Libel?
1) Statement of Fact (an expression of opinion cannot be libelous)
2) Publication- the plaintiff must show that the statement was made public (3rd party is needed)
3) Identification- the libel plaintiff is required to show that he was specifically the person whose reputation was harmed or was a member of a small group that was defamed
4) Defamation- if you say something that causes diversion, scorn, ridicule, loss of goodwill. Harm to reputation.
5) for a statement to be libelous, it must be false.
6) to support a libel claim, a plaintiff must show that the defendant was at fault in making public the allegedly false & defamatory statement of fact
‘Reckless Disregard’ Criteria
Urgency of the story
Source reliability
Story believability
What are the 3 damages?
1) Actual - most common
2) special- exact monetary loss (have to prove loss of job, objective proof)
3) punitive- punish defendant “smart money”
What are the defenses of Libel? (Media has to prove)
1) Truth
2) Fair Report Privilege- as long as you take info from the reports & it’s fair & accurate you can’t be used for libel.
Qualified Privilege-statements are made during the meeting
3) Fair Comment & Criticism- a common law privilege that protects critics from lawsuits (Reviews)
4) Opinion- Ollman Case v Evans (Ollman Test)
5) Rhetorical Hyperbole- exaggerate a quality in someone. Parody & Satire- protects comedians
6) Neutral Reportage- report but don’t pick sides
7) Wire Service Defense- the defendant received material containing the defamatory statement from a reputable news-gathering agency.
What is a summary judgement?
Dismiss of lawsuit bc plaintiff can’t prove actual malice
Statute of Limitations
For all crimes & civil actions. 1-3 years charges can be filed. 2 years in MN
William Prosser 4 distinct pattern of cases of privacy tort. (Civil law)
1) False Light
2) Appropriation
3) intrusion
4) Private Facts/Disclosure tort
To prove false light plaintiff is required to prove
1) material was published
2) plaintiff was identified
3) published material was false of created a false impression
4) highly offensive
5) the defendant acted intentionally or recklessly or negligently if the plaintiff is a private person
Appropriation
Taking someone’s likeness, voice or identity for commercial or trade purpose w/o permission.
1) Commercialization- someone who wants to remain private
2) Right of Publicity- someone who wants to be known. It diminishes the persons economic value. (Property right)
Intrusion
Can take place in public
No defense.
Private facts (Disclosure tort)
Media tells info about you. It’s true but private. Highly embarrassing, intimate.
DEFENSES- truthful info lawfully obtained from public records.
Cox v. Cohn- you don’t have any privacy when on public record.
Newsworthiness- Legitimate public concern until the point of outrage
What landmark case gave us the right to privacy from govt?
1965 Griswold v. Connecticut
penumbra of amendments give us the right of privacy from the govt.
1st. 3rd. 4th. 5th. 9th. 14th. Amendments.
What amendments give us the right to privacy from the govt?
1st. your right not to assemble with people you don’t want to assemble with
3rd. Right of homeowners privacy.
4th. Can’t perform unreasonable search or seizure.
5th. Protecting your privacy of mind
9th. If right wasn’t listed (forgotten) it is still retained by the people.
14th. No state can take away your liberty, w/o due process of law.
What’s the MN landmark case that granted us privacy rights?
Lake v Walmart.
In MN, privacy is protected & you can sue for:
1) Appropriation 2)Intrusion 3) Private facts behind disclosed
Can’t sue for False Light, you’d have to sue for Libel
