Re: Angry ExEmployee disparages current employees, company does nothing.
- From: gordonb.v7xwu@xxxxxxxxxxx (Gordon Burditt)
- Date: Wed, 25 Jul 2007 00:59:36 -0000
If the disgruntled worker has made representations of fact that are false
and injurious, then you many sue for libel. If he's just said that you're
ugly, that doesn't count. He may be in violation of his ISP's terms of
use, though.
I am very interested in this sort of speech and would like to read debate
and law which governs this. What is the distinction between an insult and
a derrogatory remark especially when it deals with employers or products.
For example, Wiley Coyote is disgruntled that all of the Acme products he
uses to trap roadrunner fail for him. He finally decides to no longer use
Acme produucts. If he make a statement about Acme such as, "I Wiley Coyote
Super Genuis wouldn't used Acme product if they sucked his coyote ass" would
there be a cause of action?
Statements that are (a) false, (b) are statements of fact, and (c)
cause injury to the party that is the subject of the statement can
be libel or slander. You need all three.
Isn't that statement TRUE? Wiley Coyote wouldn't use another Acme
product. Truth is a defense to libel and slander. In this case,
it's also Wiley Coyote's opinion. If Wiley Coyote claimed "Consumer
Reports recommends not using Acme products", and Consumer Reports
said no such thing, perhaps he'll get sued both by Acme and Consumer
Reports.
Statements of opinion aren't libel or slander: "The manager of
Acme products is a jerk".
He is? :D If I believe that he is a jerk, can there be any cause of
action against out good friend Wiley? Especially, if I decide not to
purchase from Acme because of his opinion?
I say there's no libel or slander case against Wiley for that statement.
Except maybe if Wiley is a qualified psychiatrist and this statement
appears in a professional diagnosis of the manager's mental condition.
What if Wiley Coyote was asked about one of Acme's products and said
something like "I wouldn't use any Acme 'crap' when I Super products
has RoadRunner-Trap 2000 for a cheaper price"?
This might be libel or slander if any of the following is true:
(a) I Super products *DOES NOT* have RoadRunner-Trap 2000.
(b) I Super products' RoadRunner-Trap 2000 is not cheaper.
(And a certain amount of leeway is given here, since prices change.
and you can argue that since Acme's product makes you buy the net
separately, you have to include that in the overall price)
(c) There is no I Super products.
It should be fairly easy to determine if these are true by examining
the facts.
However, if Wiley's facts are straight and he just thinks the I
Super products design is better, there's no libel or slander. It
is Wiley's *opinion* that Acme's products are 'crap', and besides,
he's got a bunch of experiences with them to justify that claim.
As to which product is *better*? That's a matter of opinion, and
different people place different weights on different features.
Some people might think another cupholder is worth 500 horsepower
in the trap engine, and others wouldn't.
I'm just trying to understand what is actionably derrogatory and what
is not. All one has to do is visit any one of a hundred *.advocacy
news groups to see the highly opinionated intercourse that ensues in
them to question what is and is not defamatory.
If it's opinionated, it's not libel. It's opinion. You can have
George Bush checked by a doctor to see if he has AIDS. You can't
have George Bush checked by a doctor to see if he is a dumbass.
See the difference?
.
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