Princess Diana's butler, Paul Burrell, said her mother called her a "whore" and some other "nasty" things. Apparently, mom didn't like her little girl dating Muslim men. When can a reputation-damaging remark become a lawsuit?
Test #1: It has to be "defamatory".
A statement is considered "defamatory" if it injures your reputation and exposes you to public hatred, contempt, ridicule, or degradation. If the statement doesn't obviously do so, then you have to prove that it does. Some statements are so defamatory, however, like the Diana's mom calling her a whore, that they are considered defamation per se and you would not have to prove the statement's harm. Other examples of statements that are defamatory per se are allegations of serious sexual misconduct, serious criminal misbehavior, or that a person has a disease like a venereal disease.
Test #2: It injured your reputation.
If a statement is defamatory per se, the law presumes injury to your reputation. In other cases, you must prove the damage. If your reputation is already damaged, you will have a hard time getting more out of the lawsuit than nominal damages, and it won't be worth the cost of the lawsuit.
Test #3: It was published to third parties.
It must be communicated to the public.
Test #4: It can't be true.
If it's true, you're out of luck. Let's say someone injured your reputation at work by telling your colleagues that you are a convicted pedophile. If true, it is not defamation. If it's mostly true with minor details that are false, it's still "too true" to meet the lawsuit test. For a sustainable lawsuit, the statement has to be both 1) false, and 2) the person saying it had to know or should have known that it was false.
Test #1: It has to be "defamatory".
A statement is considered "defamatory" if it injures your reputation and exposes you to public hatred, contempt, ridicule, or degradation. If the statement doesn't obviously do so, then you have to prove that it does. Some statements are so defamatory, however, like the Diana's mom calling her a whore, that they are considered defamation per se and you would not have to prove the statement's harm. Other examples of statements that are defamatory per se are allegations of serious sexual misconduct, serious criminal misbehavior, or that a person has a disease like a venereal disease.
Test #2: It injured your reputation.
If a statement is defamatory per se, the law presumes injury to your reputation. In other cases, you must prove the damage. If your reputation is already damaged, you will have a hard time getting more out of the lawsuit than nominal damages, and it won't be worth the cost of the lawsuit.
Test #3: It was published to third parties.
It must be communicated to the public.
Test #4: It can't be true.
If it's true, you're out of luck. Let's say someone injured your reputation at work by telling your colleagues that you are a convicted pedophile. If true, it is not defamation. If it's mostly true with minor details that are false, it's still "too true" to meet the lawsuit test. For a sustainable lawsuit, the statement has to be both 1) false, and 2) the person saying it had to know or should have known that it was false.
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