how do i proceed with a lawsuit for defamation of character and emotional distress?

Question

what do i need to do to proceed with a defamation and emotional distress lawsuit?

Answer 1

In US law, usually there are five elements:

1) Publication (public dissemination) of the remark
2) Identification of the plaintiff
3) Affected the plaintiffs rep.
4) false information
5) defendant is at fault

Try the link below.

You also need to prove damages (lost profits?). There are also First Amendment defenses.

Good luck with the emotional distress claim. I was told in law school that "emotional distress" is like the Hail Mary pass -- it rarely works because no one really knows how to measure it or prove it.

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-Truth is an absolute defense in the United States as well as Canada. In some other countries it is also necessary to show a benefit to the public good in having the information brought to light.

-Statements made in a good faith and reasonable belief that they were true are generally treated the same as true statements; however, the court may inquire into the reasonableness of the belief. The degree of care expected will vary with the nature of the defendant: an ordinary person might safely rely on a single newspaper report, while the newspaper would be expected to carefully check multiple sources.

-Privilege is a defense when witness testimony, attorneys' arguments, and judges' decisions, rulings, and statements made in court, or statements by legislators on the floor of the legislature, or statements made by a person to their spouse, are the cause for the claim. These statements are said to be privileged and cannot be cause for a defamation claim.

-Opinion is a defense recognized in nearly every jurisdiction. If the person makes a statement of opinion rather than a statement of fact, defamation claims usually cannot be brought because opinions are inherently not falsifiable. Some jurisdictions have eliminated the distinction between fact and opinion, and allow any statements suggesting a factual basis to support a defamation claim.

-Fair comment on a matter of public interest, statements made with an honest belief in their truth on a matter of public interest (official acts) are defenses to a defamation claim, even if such arguments are logically unsound; if a reasonable person could honestly entertain such an opinion, the statement is protected.

-Consent is an uncommon defense and makes the claim that the claimant consented to the dissemination of the statement.
Innocent dissemination is a defense available when a defendant had no actual knowledge of the defamatory statement or no reason to believe the statement was defamatory. The defense can be defeated if the lack of knowledge was due to negligence. Thus, a delivery service cannot be held liable for delivering a sealed defamatory letter.

-Claimant is incapable of further defamation–e.g., the claimant's position in the community is so poor that defamation could not do further damage to the plaintiff. Such a claimant could be said to be "libel-proof," since in most jurisdictions, actual damage is an essential element for a libel claim.

In addition to the above, the defendant may claim that the allegedly defamatory statement is not actually capable of being defamatory—an insulting statement that does not actually harm someone's reputation is prima facie not libelous.

Special rules apply in the case of statements made in the press concerning public figures. A series of court rulings led by New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, 376 U.S. 254 (1964) established that for public official (or other legitimate public figure) to win a libel case, the statement must have been published knowing it to be false (also known as actual malice) or with a reckless disregard to its truth.

Under United States law, libel generally requires five key elements. The plaintiff must prove that the information was published, the defendant was directly or indirectly identified, the remarks were defamatory towards the plaintiff's reputation, the published information is false, and that the defendant is at fault.

Answer 2

I'm a Paralegal Student. Yes, you can sue her but given the fact that she has had psychiatric treatment, I doubt that you would be successful. I guess it depends on the severity of her mental defect. You would have to prove that she understands right from wrong, & at the time that the allegations were made, she was in a "sane" state of mind. For example, did the two of you have an argument before the allegations were made? Did she threaten you in any way? etc.. If you decide to sue her you would probably do so in small claims court, as long as you have concrete evidence that she is lying (witnesses, etc.) you should be fine, but I don't think you can collect more than 5,000 dollars. I would love to see you on Judge Judy!!

Answer 3

It would help if you told us why you believe you have been defamed and suffered emotional distress.

Answer 4

Obtain a reputable and competent attorney.

Answer 5

Call a lawyer for a consultation and see if you have a case. You might not have a case. good luck and god bless.