Nunes Family’s Lawsuit Against Reporter Fails to Meet Defamation Standard, Judge Rules
After analyzing the sixteen allegedly defamatory statements, U.S. District Court Judge C.J. Williams found that the plaintiffs had neither identified what about them was false nor provided any facts that would have shown them to be false.
ICYMI: First Amendment Stories That Broke Over the 2020 Holidays
A federal judge in Virginia dismissed one of Rep. Devin Nunes' (R-CA) defamation suits against The Washington Post, the Federal Aviation Agency released long-awaited drone guidelines, a British judge rejected the U.S. government's request to extradite Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, and more.
Virginia Legislature Looks to Strengthen State’s Anti-SLAPP Law
Current loopholes in the state's law have lured a number of individuals into using Virginia courts to intimidate their critics. For example, of the six defamation complaints Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) filed in the past year, four were filed in Virginia.
Trump’s Media Company Sues The Washington Post for Defamation, Requests $3.78B in Damages
Donald Trump’s media company which owns his Twitter-like platform, Truth Social, sued the Washington Post May 20 for $3.78 billion in damages, claiming a recently published article on the media company’s finances is defamatory.
We're living in an era of political division and the past seven years have produced high-level clashes in the form of defamation lawsuits. First Amendment Watch has compiled recent coverage that provides context about some of the bigger cases within defamation law.
Jury Dismisses Sarah Palin’s Defamation Claim Against the NY Times
On February 15th, a jury in the District Court for the Southern District of New York, dismissed a defamation lawsuit brought by Sarah Palin, a former governor of Alaska and vice presidential candidate in 2008, against The New York Times. The decision came a day before U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff said that he planned to dismiss the suit if the jury sided with Palin. Rakoff maintained that Palin’s lawyers were unable to prove the newspaper published with “actual malice” when it incorrectly linked her to a mass shooting in a Times editorial.
Doctor Who Promoted Hydroxychloroquine Sues CNN’s Anderson Cooper For Defamation
A doctor who former president Donald Trump once promoted on his Twitter account filed a $100 million libel suit against CNN and anchor Anderson Cooper for allegedly tarnishing her medical reputation.
Pro-Trump Cartoonist Files $10.35 Million Defamation Lawsuit Against Anti-Defamation League
Ben Garrison, a cartoonist known for lionizing President Donald Trump in his drawings, is suing the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) for defamation after the organization called one of his cartoons anti-Semitic.