What is it like, being sued for libel?

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It is like participating in a poker game while in the middle of a fencing match. There is thrust, parry, bluff, counter-bluff all of which must be executed with one hand because the other is holding your wallet containing money for the bets – and it is open, spewing its contents in all directions.

The legal system is a wonderful thing.

12 thoughts on “What is it like, being sued for libel?”

  1. Well, as you’re being sued by a Christian — indeed an exemplary and licensed one — you must take great comfort in the gracious, solicitous and even-handed way in which you are no doubt being dealt. Although, I must admit, the damages sought give me a bit of a pause. Has no one checked that there has been some error … some typo … some inflation of zeros …? Has it not merely been overlooked that the damages sought constitute a potentially ruinous figure, to say nothing of the other legal costs?

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  2. What is libel?

    Libel is the type of defamation with a permanent record, like a newspaper, a letter, a website posting, an email, a picture, or a radio or TV broadcast. If you can prove that someone libeled you, and that person does not have a good defence (see the section on defences below), then a court will presume that you suffered damages and award you money to pay for your damaged reputation. But going to Supreme Court is expensive and even if you win, you may not get as much as it costs you to sue. In deciding on damages, the Court will consider your position in the community. For example, if you are a professional, damages may be higher.

    What is slander? Slander is the type of defamation with no permanent record.

    What about the right to free speech? The law protects a person’s reputation but this protection can restrict other rights, such as the right to free speech. The law tries to balance these competing rights. Sometimes, even though someone made a defamatory statement that hurt a person’s reputation, the law considers other rights more important. The law allows the following defences for a person who makes a defamatory statement.

    What are the defences to a defamation lawsuit?
    If someone sues for defamation, the most common defences are:
    •truth (known in law as “justification”)
    •absolute privilege
    •qualified privilege
    •fair comment
    •responsible communication on matters of public interest

    1. Truth or justification A statement may hurt your reputation, but if it is true, anyone who says it has a valid defence if you sue them for defamation.
    2. Absolute privilege
    3. Qualified privilege
    4. Fair comment     We all are free to comment – even harshly – about issues of public interest, as long as our comments are honest statements of opinion, based on fact, and not malicious. For example, a newspaper columnist may write that a Member of Parliament (an MP) says he supports equality and equal rights, but he opposes same-sex marriages. The columnist writes that the MP is hypocritical. If the MP sues the columnist for defamation, the columnist has the defence of fair comment. Media articles that accurately report what was said at public meetings are also privileged, unless the meeting was not of public concern and the report was not for public benefit.

    5. Responsible communication on matters of public interest In a December 2009 case, the Supreme Court of Canada established this new defence to a libel claim. The court said that journalists should be able to report statements and allegations – even if they are not true – if there’s a public interest in distributing the information to a wide audience. This defense, which looks at the whole context of a situation, can apply if:
    •the news was urgent, serious, and of public importance, and
    •the journalist used reliable sources, and tried to get and report the other side of the story.

    The court defined “journalist” widely to include bloggers and anyone else “publishing material of public interest in any medium.”

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  3. As anyone who has been involved in court proceedings, it is indeed a “Legal System”, and alas not a “Justice System”.
    A labyrinth of legalities, created by lawyers, and through which only they can navigate, with a lawyer to sit in the pilot seat.
    Scary.
    You know that your brothers and sisters are in unceasing prayer for you, and despite any or all the legalities involved, we pray for our Lord’s justice to prevail, and that His protection, strength, and comfort will sustain you, and bring you through this “trial”, with your joyous and satirical spirit intact.
    God loves you David, and so do I.

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  4. I happen to remember that our Lord Jesus Christ did not think too highly of the legal profession either. He speaks of the legal teachers when he says:

    “They tie up heavy, cumbersome loads and put them on other people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.” (Mat 23:4)

    The tragic thing is that had our friend not been a conservative, married, white Anglo-Saxon, Anglican, but a gay, black, native Indian, and impeccably liberal, heshe would have had lawyers queuing up to defend them pro bono.

    Gives insight into all that Christ taught us about the world.

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  5. Jesus taught us that the collection of money [tithe]in the church was not for itself, but for the poor, and not just the Anglican poor.

    Instead, 99% goes to building; maintenance; utilities; salaries; etcetera.

    This lawsuit will simply add to the trillions already wasted by the megachurces; contrary to scripture and Jesus instructions to us. Money that has not put one breadcrumb into the mouth of a starving child!

    Ironically, at the root of this litigation is fundamental disagreement upon scriptural interpretation, and then it all comes down to money…

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  6. What does Holy Scripture say about biting sarcasm? I assume the comment about the tragedy was intended to be sarcastic too.
    Jesus calls us to repentance, turning in a new direction.

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