What are the Differences Between Defamation, Slander, and Libel?

When one party says, writes, or publishes something negative about another party that harms their reputation, a lawsuit may ensue. While the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects freedom of speech and of the press, this freedom comes within limits. Making false accusations in the form of slander, libel, or defamation does not fall under the protection of freedom of speech. If an individual or business suffers because of these acts by another party, the injured party may have the right to sue the offender. Learn the differences between these three similar facets of law.

Defamation

Defamation is an umbrella term that encompasses both slander and libel. If a party is guilty of defamation, it has released a false statement in some form that has since damaged the other party’s reputation. The reputation could be personal, political, or business-related. The keyword here is “false.” It is not defamation to publish or make public a statement that hurts an entity’s reputation if the statement is an opinion or a fact. This is why systems such as Yelp can exist despite negative reviews that sometimes hurt businesses – the statements published there are the opinions of reviewers.

There is a thin line between defamation and freedom of speech. This makes defamation claims complex and difficult to prove. A plaintiff must show that the defendant made a statement, someone published the statement, the statement caused injury, the statement was false, and the statement did not fall into a privileged category. A statement may be privileged if the person issuing it was under oath, a high government official, someone in a political debate, or a person talking about his or her spouse. In these specific situations, the courts may not deem the statement defamation. Showing that the statement is true or one of opinion are absolute defenses to defamation claims.

Slander

Slander is a form of defamation that exists when someone speaks the false statement. The spoken word can act as defamation even if no one writes the statement down or sends it to publication. This is only the case if a third party – someone other than the plaintiff and defendant – overheard the spoken statement. Otherwise, the defendant did not make the statement public and thus would likely not be guilty of defamation. The courts typically consider slander the least harmful form of defamation, since memory of the spoken word fades more quickly than printed or published material.

Slander can be more difficult to prove than other forms of defamation since there is no hard evidence of the spoken untruth. Written, recorded, or published defamation, on the other hand, comes with evidence a plaintiff could potentially show in court. Often, the only evidence of slander is in the word of the person(s) who overheard the spoken untruth. Defamation spoken over the radio or television is technically libel and not slander, since broadcasting reaches as large an audience as written and printed publications.

Libel

Libel is defamation via the written word or a print publication. This can include an article in a newspaper or magazine, online content, photos, video content, or recorded audio. Any form of communication published to the masses may be libel if the statement is false and harms the person or business. Libel is a civil wrong that can lead to a lawsuit to sue for damages.

Proving libel is often easier than proving slander, since the plaintiff has hard evidence of the defamation in the form of a recording or print publication. Victims of slander and libel may seek recovery for injured reputations, loss of business, and losses such as job termination that results from the public statement. Always enlist the help of an experienced legal team in a defamation case.