§ 5-105. Assault, libel, or slander actions An action for assault, libel, or slander shall be filed within one year from the date it accrues.
In Maryland, to win a slander or libel lawsuit, public figures must prove the existence of actual malice on the part of the defendant. Private figures, however, only have to prove negligence on the part of the defendant.
Slander of title only arises when an individual makes statements that he or she knows are false or makes statements that he or she knows might be false with the intent to harm the victim.
Slander can be hard to prove, as the complainant must show the slanderer was driven by malice and knew their claims were false. Slander is different from libel, which are false statements made through print or broadcast.
Written defamation is called "libel," and spoken defamation is considered "slander," and they both fall under "defamation." In the US, defamation is not usually a crime. Instead, it is a "tort" or civil wrong. Under the law, a person who has been defamed can seek damages from the perpetrator.
In the context of modern human rights law, defamation can be understood in terms of the Article 17 of the ICCPR, specifically the protection against “unlawful attacks” on a person's “honour and reputation”. Defamation, libel and slander laws provide recourse where false statements cause harm to a person's reputation.
To state a claim for defamation under Maryland law, a plaintiff must allege (1) that “the defendant made a defamatory statement to a third person,” (2) that “the statement was false,” (3) that “the defendant was legally at fault in making the statement,” and (4) that “the plaintiff suffered harm.” Lindenmuth v.
Injury. To succeed in a defamation lawsuit, the plaintiff must show the statement to have caused injury to the subject of the statement. This means that the statement must have hurt the reputation of the subject of the statement.