Defenses Against Defamation Claims: Legal Strategies for Protection

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Introduction

Defamation lawsuits are difficult to manage, whether you’re a plaintiff or a defendant. The nature of free speech protects citizens from being sued for the majority of negative statements they make. This is a good thing; without these protections, people could be censored for calling attention to negative aspects of another person’s character. But this also means that what actually constitutes defamation in a court is quite specific, and there are a multitude of defamation defenses set in place to ensure people can only be prosecuted for statements that are false and damaging. If you’re filing a defamation lawsuit, you’ll need to know how a defense team can argue against your claims.

In this article, we will overview the two most common defenses against slander, libel, and online defamation: Truth and Opinion. We will also discuss the different privileges individuals may have against a defamation suit, as well as some lesser-known but legally valid defamation defenses. No matter what side of a defamation lawsuit you are on, you can use the help of a Florida online defamation attorney, such as Ludwin Law Group, to help build your defense or strengthen your case against one.

Truth

A defamation case, by its definition, requires that the statement(s) in question is false. Therefore, if the statement can be proven true, the defendant has an ironclad case. This is why the truth defense is considered an absolute defamation defense, one that automatically ends the litigation in the defendant’s favor. It is possible, however, that a statement may be true in some areas, but false or inaccurate in others. This is where the substantial truth doctrine comes in. This further protects the defendant in such instances where their statement may not be completely truthful, so long as the bulk of it is determined to be true. Even in cases where the statement can be construed as being misleading via the omission of relevant facts, so long as the gist of it is true, it is protected under the substantial truth doctrine.

Opinion

The other common defense against defamation claims is that of opinion. In addition to being false, a defamatory statement must also be uttered under the pretense of being a statement of fact. As such, if it can be proven that the statement was invoked as an opinion, the plaintiff has no case. As opposed to the truth defense, it can be more difficult to determine if a statement was genuinely an opinion; even statements that are couched under “I think” or “I believe that” can still be defamatory if the person(s) it was uttered to were under the belief that it was factual. For this reason, most courts use four factors to determine the circumstances of the statement and whether a reasonable audience would consider the statement an opinion under such circumstances. These factors are the specific language used in making the statement, the ability to determine if the statement is true, the general context of the statement, and the wider context of the statement. These specific factors are not shared amongst every state court, but all courts consider the circumstances of a defamatory statement to some degree when deliberating.

Privileges

In addition to legal defenses, defendants in defamation claims may also be protected by certain privileges. The highest level is absolute privilege. Under this, the defendant has the absolute right to make the statement, even if it’s proven to be defamatory. This privilege is typically invoked only in judicial matters or government proceedings, where the interests of the public are determined to outweigh the right to defend against defamatory statements. However, absolute privilege is context-based, and an individual protected under it in one circumstance may be still found guilty of defamation in another circumstance.

Similar to absolute privilege is qualified privilege. This protects individuals who are determined to be acting in good faith. It can include statements made in self-defense, or made by citizens and lower-level government officials in local or legislative matters. What separates this from absolute privilege is that individuals are not immune from prosecution. If a plaintiff can prove that the defendant abused their qualified privilege, or otherwise acted with actual malice, they can still be found guilty.

Other privileges that may be invoked include the fair report privilege, the neutral report privilege, and the statutory privilege. The fair report privilege protects members of news organizations who, when reporting on information contained in official documents and reports, may publish statements that can be construed as defamatory. The neutral report privilege is similar, protecting members of news organizations who republish or rebroadcast potentially defamatory statements about public figures in the interests of the public. Finally, statutory privileges are defamation defenses invoked under special circumstances according to federal and state laws. The extent of such privileges varies from jurisdiction but typically protects individuals acting in public interest or self-defense.

Other Defenses

The defamation defenses and privileges detailed above reflect those most frequently invoked in defamation claims. Some other defamation defenses that may be invoked include consent and statute of limitations. In the case of consent, a plaintiff may not have a case if it can be proven that they consented to the publishing of a statement with full knowledge of the language contained within. They may still be able to sue if they can prove the defendant published information outside the plaintiff’s consent. For statute of limitations, the plaintiff has a limited amount of time in which to file a defamation case; in most states, this is a period of one year, although some go as far as three. The statute of limitations for defamation in Florida is two years. After this period, the plaintiff has no legal ground to file a claim, even if the statement has been republished by other sources since. This is prudent in cases involving online defamation. Before contacting an online defamation attorney in Florida, you should make sure the statute of limitations in your case hasn’t expired.

There are several other defamation defenses that, while rarely used, are still valid in most circumstances. One of these is the innocent construction rule, which protects defendants when the statement made is determined to be too ambiguous to be ruled defamatory. This means that even if the statement is believed to be defamatory by others, the defendant may still win the case if a significant amount of people believe it to be harmless. Another defense is the incremental harm doctrine, which protects defamatory statements made in conjunction with larger, non-actionable statements. If the court determines that the defamatory portion would do no more harm than the surrounding statements, the case may be thrown out. Defamation defenses such as these are rare, but our online defamation attorneys are qualified to prepare a thorough defense from every angle.

Conclusion

There are many angles from which a defamation case can be defended against. If you’re the victim of a defamation lawsuit, you’ll want to know your defense options against the plaintiff and how you and an online defamation attorney can prove it. If you’re filing a defamation suit, you’ll need to prepare for any potential defamation defenses the defendant can use against you. Whichever side you’re on, Ludwin Law Group will provide you with qualified legal counsel and strengthen your case. You can reach out to Info@ludwinlaw.com or 561-455-4455.

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