Also known as: actionable words in themselves · actionable per se · slander per se
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
Language that constitutes libel or slander per se. Recovery is permitted without proof of special harm because the statement is deemed inherently injurious to reputation.
Walter Washington, a financial advisor, learns that a competitor told several clients he had been investigated for mishandling retirement funds. The statement imputes conduct incompatible with his profession. Several clients immediately withdraw their accounts. Washington sues for slander per se and recovers presumed damages without proving actual fee loss.
Wade Watson, a physician, discovers that a hospital administrator posted an internal memo falsely stating he had lost his license for negligence. Watson has not yet lost any patients or income. He sues for libel. Because the statement is written defamation, the administrator is liable for at least nominal damages without any showing of actual loss.
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Willow Walker, an investment advisor, is accused in a televised interview of running a Ponzi-style scheme that robs retirees. Twenty-three clients withdraw their accounts the next week, causing immediate loss of management fees. Walker sues for slander. Because the statement is actionable per se, she may recover both presumed damages and the proved special harm of lost fees.
Wallace Webb discovers that a data broker published an inaccurate online profile stating he had been convicted of fraud. The profile causes no lost job or income. He sues for libel. Because the statement is written defamation, the broker is liable for at least nominal damages without any showing of actual loss.
A spoken statement is actionable without proof of special damages when it falls into a recognized slander per se category, such as imputing a serious crime, a loathsome disease, serious sexual misconduct, or conduct incompatible with the plaintiff's business or profession.
No. Written defamation is treated as libel and is actionable per se at common law, so the plaintiff may recover at least nominal damages and often general damages without showing specific financial loss.
The plaintiff must prove that the publication was the legal cause of special harm, meaning actual pecuniary loss such as lost clients or income.
Yes. An accusation of serious criminal conduct, such as bribery or money laundering, constitutes slander per se, so reputational harm is presumed and special damages need not be shown.
…victims even if their harms may be difficult to prove or measure. See, e.g., Restatement (First) of Torts §§569 (libel), 570 (slander per se) (1938). Just as the common law permitted suit in such instances, the violation of a procedural right granted by statute can be sufficient in some circumstances to constitute injury in…