Also known as: libel · libels · libeled · libeling · defame
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A tort committed by publishing false matter defamatory of another in writing or another permanent form. Liability attaches even without proof of special harm. The publication must reach at least one third party and must tend to harm the plaintiff's reputation.
United Equity mails its monthly newsletter to fifty subscribers in State B. The January issue accuses Continental Wealth of running a fraud mill. Continental Wealth files a libel action in federal court in State B after several subscribers cancel their contracts. The court may exercise personal jurisdiction because the publisher regularly circulates the newsletter in the state and the statements caused injury there.
Dana posts in a community Facebook group that Mr. Lopez was removed for showing pornography to students. The statement is false. Mr. Lopez sues Dana for libel. Dana is subject to liability even though Mr. Lopez proves no special harm from the post.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Lee tells reporters at a press conference that engineer Jordan ignored safety protocols and signed off on faulty software. The statement is false. Jordan sues Aurora Aero for libel. The court awards Jordan nominal damages even without proof of actual economic loss.
Riley posts a viral review accusing CodeCraft Apps of secretly mining users' banking passwords. Downloads collapse and AppSphere cancels a planned distribution deal. CodeCraft sues Riley for libel. Riley is liable for the specific lost revenue that the publication legally caused.
Leo posts on a regional trade forum that Apex Builders diverted safety funds to personal luxuries. Several readers forward the post to other contractors. Apex's business declines further after the forwards. Leo is liable for the additional special harm that resulted from the repetition.
A newspaper publishes an editorial criticizing a city commissioner for official misconduct. The commissioner sues the paper for libel. The commissioner must prove that the paper acted with actual malice because the statements concerned the commissioner's official conduct.
No. One who falsely publishes defamatory matter in a manner that constitutes libel is subject to liability even though no special harm results from the publication.
A defendant liable for libel must pay at least nominal damages. The defendant is also liable for any special harm legally caused by the publication and for proved actual harm to reputation.
The original publication is a legal cause of special harm from repetition if the third person was privileged to repeat it or if the repetition was authorized or intended by the original publisher.
A publisher that regularly circulates its publication in a state and thereby causes potential injury there may be sued for libel in that state consistent with due process.
…and the Supreme Court of Alabama affirmed. 273 Ala. 656, 144 So. 2d 25. Respondent's complaint alleged that he had been libeled by statements in a full-page advertisement that was carried in the New York Times on March 29, 1960. Entitled "Heed Their Rising Voices," the advertisement began by stating that "As the…