Bloggers Protected by Anti-SLAPP Law
Eric Goldman posted a nice little entry on his Technology & Marketing Law Blog about bloggers' anti-SLAPP protection. SLAPP stands for Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation, and it happens when one party (usually a big company) files a lawsuit to try to shut up another party who's saying something the big company doesn't like.
The thing is, criticizing somebody, whether it's an individual, a business, or even a big company, isn't necessarily against the law. So lots of places have anti-SLAPP protections so people won't get sued just because they say something somebody doesn't like. The recent case Eric discusses, anti-SLAPP protection was extended to a blogger, which really isn't that earth-shattering, but I think it's something bloggers should be aware of.
Since I blog about making money online, I also blog about ways you might think you're going to make money online, when really you're just going to get scammed. Occasionally, when I point out a particular scam, I get some idiot emailing me or posting in a forum somewhere ranting about "slander" or "libel" and how I should expect to hear from their lawyers...blah, blah, blah....take the shirt off my back....blah, blah, blah...cellmate named Bruiser...blah, blah, blah...and on and on it goes, and you wouldn't believe some of the ridiculous threats some of them come up with.
Of course laws are different in different places, and it's never safe to assume that just because something makes sense, that's how the powers that be will do things, but in most cases, in most places, calling a spade a spade isn't illegal, and criticizing, or even insulting somebody, isn't necessarily a crime.
So in the event that you end up dealing with some moron who tries to take it further than just throwing around baseless and pathetic threats, and who actually tries to take you to court in hopes that you'll stop the criticism (especially if your criticisms are dead-on), it's worth checking to see if there are anti-SLAPP protections where you are. It might just turn out that the moron is the one who's breaking the law.
The thing is, criticizing somebody, whether it's an individual, a business, or even a big company, isn't necessarily against the law. So lots of places have anti-SLAPP protections so people won't get sued just because they say something somebody doesn't like. The recent case Eric discusses, anti-SLAPP protection was extended to a blogger, which really isn't that earth-shattering, but I think it's something bloggers should be aware of.
Since I blog about making money online, I also blog about ways you might think you're going to make money online, when really you're just going to get scammed. Occasionally, when I point out a particular scam, I get some idiot emailing me or posting in a forum somewhere ranting about "slander" or "libel" and how I should expect to hear from their lawyers...blah, blah, blah....take the shirt off my back....blah, blah, blah...cellmate named Bruiser...blah, blah, blah...and on and on it goes, and you wouldn't believe some of the ridiculous threats some of them come up with.
Of course laws are different in different places, and it's never safe to assume that just because something makes sense, that's how the powers that be will do things, but in most cases, in most places, calling a spade a spade isn't illegal, and criticizing, or even insulting somebody, isn't necessarily a crime.
So in the event that you end up dealing with some moron who tries to take it further than just throwing around baseless and pathetic threats, and who actually tries to take you to court in hopes that you'll stop the criticism (especially if your criticisms are dead-on), it's worth checking to see if there are anti-SLAPP protections where you are. It might just turn out that the moron is the one who's breaking the law.
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