Couple win online libel lawsuit against individuals

[Zoidberg]

This report from our local Fort Worth newspaper is a noteworthy case because it involves a fairly uncommon instance of personal liability being affirmed against individuals libeling other individuals online in publicly accessible forums.  Whether it withstands appeal is another matter.

Nowadays libel suits by individuals against individuals are fairly uncommon.  Usually it's a "deep pockets" type of tort.  Either corporations with deep pockets will sue individuals and entities for defamation, or individuals will sue corporations.  In this case it's possible that the plaintiffs may have taken into account the fact that Topix, the online forum on which they were repeatedly harassed and defamed, is owned in part by the same corporation that owns the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

In many other countries journalists and free speech advocates are trying to have libel/slander laws overturned or revised, since in some countries those laws are used primarily to silence journalists and critics of government and wealthy oligarchical powers behind the elected officials.


Couple smeared online win lawsuit
Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/04/24/3909676/couple-smeared-online-win-lawsuit.html#storylink=cpy

...a Tarrant County jury awarded the couple $13.78 million in a libel judgment. The ruling sends the message that people have the freedom to write what they please online, but they can be held accountable.

The award is the largest ever assessed in an Internet libel case, the Leshers' attorney, Meagan Hassan, said Tuesday.

Lawyers for the plaintiffs "compiled more than 25,000 instances of libelous online posts ... that accused her clients of engaging in sexual perversions and molestations, drug dealing and other criminal behavior."

But in court, they introduced only 800 of the worst, Hassan said.

"No one who has ever read the comments has argued that they were reasonable or rational," Hassan said. "This is a good case to show just how bad things can get online."

The case shows that those who libel others online and rely on Internet service providers or hosting companies to protect their identities are out of touch with the times, legal scholars said.

"This case proves that you just can't say bad things about someone without any consequences," Vogel said. "I never put anything in an e-mail or posts that I would not want a jury to see."

(Above excerpts from Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4/24/12)