Chapter 4: Libel and Emotional Distress

Libel laws allow people who think their reputation has been damaged to sue the party accountable. People value their reputation, and some people and companies rely on their reputation for their livelihood. This is why when it is damaged by another person or group, someone may want to sue them for it. Libel laws also hold media outlets accountable to not post false statements.

It used to be that in libel cases, the Defendant has to prove why their statement was true. Now, the burden of proof is placed on the plaintiff, who must prove that all needed elements apply to their case and it can be considered libelous.

A libelous claim must be a statement of fact. Opinions cannot be considered libelous. Only claims that intend to be received as factual but are in fact untrue can be considered libelous.

Another rule to determine if a statement is libelous is that it has to be proven to be published to the public. This means at least one other person besides the two involved in the case has to have heard or seen the statement. Someone who republishes a libelous statement can be held just as accountable as the original publisher.

A person must also be able to clearly identify that they are the specific person or group targeted by a statement to consider it libelous.

In order for the plaintiff to win a libel case, they must also prove that the statement is defamatory. This means that the statement harms their reputation or subjects them to ridicule and scorn.

And important part of determining if a statement is libelous is proving it to be false. No matter how mean a comment is, or how terribly it impacts a person's life, if the statement is in fact, true, then it cannot be considered libelous. The plaintiff must also prove the defendant was at fault for making the claim. This is called "actual malice," or knowledge of falsity.

No matter in what way the accused libelous material was published, the plaintiff must prove these same things. These are the requirements for every single libel case.

Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress (NIED) is a tort that someone can sue with if another person causes them careless emotional harm. To successfully claim this, a plaintiff must prove four things: "the defendant had a duty to use due care, the defendant negligently breached that duty, the breach caused the plaintiff's injury, and the breach was the proximate cause of the plaintiff's severe emotional distress," (Reynolds, Ross, Trager 2018). An NIED case against the media was successful when a woman was attacked after her name and address was published in a newspaper.