Social
Media
Defamation

Defamation is, generally speaking, making an untrue statement to another person that would cause an average person to think worse about someone or “a statement that tends to injure a person’s reputation in the eyes of reasonable members of society”.  Defamation includes both libel (written statements) and slander (spoken statements).  Both individuals and companies can suffer from defamation.

Defamation claims have been the subject of litigation for years.  Before the internet, defamation claims involved “old” media including newspapers, magazines, radio and television.

With the advent of the internet and the resulting rapid sharing of information, defamation claims have increasingly involved “new” media such as social media sites, travel evaluation web portals, search engines, on-line publications, and blogs.

As with many other areas of the law, social media and defamation laws vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, often affecting the outcome of litigation.  And in the era of instant globalized communication, defamation can often involve transnational elements.  For instance it is possible for a victim of defamation living in one country to bring a claim against a media company operating in another for allowing the posting of defamatory remarks in a third country.

Global Justice Network attorneys are uniquely situated to evaluate the facts involved in each individual defamation case, as well as the defamation and social media laws relevant to different jurisdictions. We work together to provide defamed victims with the best guidance and legal assistance.