A form of publication which tends to cause one to lose the esteem of the community is defamation. This is injury to reputation. A person can be held liable for the defamation of another. In order to prove defamation, the plaintiff must prove:
- that a statement was made about the plaintiff's reputation, honesty or integrity that is not true;
- publication to a third party (i.e., another person hears or reads the statement); and
- the plaintiff suffers damages as a result of the statement.
Slander is a form of defamation that consists of making false oral statements about a person which would damage that person's reputation. If one spreads a rumor that his neighbor has been in jail and this is not true, the person making such false statements could be held liable for slander.
Defamation which occurs by written statements is known as libel. Libel also may result from a picture or visual representation. Truth is an absolute defense to slander or libel.
Some statements, while libelous or slanderous, are absolutely privileged in the sense that the statements can be made without fear of a lawsuit for slander. The best example is statements made in a court of law. An untrue statement made about a person in court which damages that person's reputation will generally not cause liability to the speaker as far as slander is concerned. However, if the statement is untrue, the person making it may be liable for criminal perjury.
If a communication is made in good faith on a subject in which the party communicating it has a legitimate right or interest in communicating it, this communication may be exempt from slander liability due to a qualified privileged.
The following form letter demands that someone cease making libelous or slanderous statements, or appropriate legal action will be taken.
Slander And Libel Are Both Forms Of Which Tort In Georgia
Instant download
Description
Form popularity
FAQ
In Georgia, you can sue for defamation if you can prove that false statements were made with intent to harm your reputation.
- A viable defamation claim under Georgia law consists of: (1) a false and defamatory statement concerning the plaintiff: (2) an unprivileged communication to a third party; (3) fault by the defendant amounting at least to negligence; and (4) special harm or the action ability of the statement irrespective of special ...
First Exception. —Imputation of truth which public good requires to be made or published. —It is not defamation to impute anything which is true concerning any person, if it be for the public good that the imputation should be made or published. Whether or not it is for the public good is a question of fact.
Generally, slander occurs when the reputation or good name of someone is damaged as a result of false statements that are orally made.
Defamation is a statement that injures a third party's reputation. The tort of defamation includes both libel (written statements) and slander (spoken statements). State common law and statutory law governs defamation actions, and each state varies in their standards for defamation and potential damages .
Slander is spoken defamation. Courts typically consider libel to be more harmful than slander because written statements last longer than spoken statements and can be distributed more widely.
Defamation is a statement that injures a third party's reputation. The tort of defamation includes both libel (written statements) and slander (spoken statements).
Defamation is any false information that harms the reputation of a person, business, or organization. Defamation includes both libel and slander. Libel generally refers to defamatory statements that are published or broadcast (more permanent) while slander refers to verbal defamatory statements (more fleeting).
The terms libel, slander, and defamation are frequently confused with each other. They are all similar in that they all fall into the same general area of law that concerns false statements which harm a person's reputation. This general area of law is called defamation law.
More info
Slander per se pursuant to OCGA § 51-5-4(a)(3) is a false statement against a plaintiff in reference to the plaintiff's trade, office, or profession. Defamation is the general tort that encompasses statements that damage a person's reputation.Section 51-5-3 - What constitutes publication of libel. Section 51-5-4 - Slander defined; when special damage required; when damage inferred. The tort of defamation includes both libel (written statements) and slander (spoken statements).
