Green Energy
It’s known as “libel tourism” and here’s how it works: A book published in the United States names an individual abroad who supports terrorist groups. That individual – for the sake of discussion, let’s say he’s a Saudi petro-billionaire with a home in London – goes online and orders a few copies which arrive in the mail. He takes those books to a British attorney who files a lawsuit complaining that his client has been libeled.
The billionaire knows it will be much easier to prevail in the U.K. than it would be in an American court where the First Amendment and decades of case law provide free speech protections. (Under English law, by contrast, the burden in a libel case is on the defendant to prove his innocence – which can be impossible if he’s been using confidential sources or even just sources who don’t want to cross an ocean and take part in a courtroom battle.)
The legal costs are chump change for the billionaire, while few non-fiction writers command similar resources. If the writer chooses not to spend months living in a hotel and fighting it out in court, the case will be forfeit and he will be hit with a “default judgment.” If he doesn’t pay, he’ll never again be able to set foot in the U.K. and other countries that enforce British court judgments.
But more important is this: The message gets sent, loud and clear, to journalists, scholars and publishers, that researching and writing about terrorists and those who enable them is verboten – even in America.
- British Law May Be Changed To Prevent Libel Tourism
Amiel Ungar reports that Britain looks like it's changing its laws to get rid of libel tourism: Britain is about to change its libel laws. This development rates as world news for a few reasons: Britain will no longer be the favored site for "libel...
- Law Reform Is Badly Needed, In Several Places
British MP David Davis has brought up an important subject - the serious need for reformation of Britain's libel laws (Hat tip: Melanie Phillips): As a Parliament, we have failed to defend one of our nation's primary virtues-free speech. We have...
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CALIFORNIA BECOMES SECOND STATE TO PROTECT AMERICANS FROM FOREIGN LIBEL LAWS byMichael Travis The governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, signed a law yesterday that will protect American journalist and broadcasters from British and foreign libel...
- Don't Let British Law Overrule American Law And The Search For Truth
Rachel Ehrenfeld may be reaching a victory in one of the most important free speech cases in the past three decades. WorldNetDaily has the latest on what Ehrenfeld's been dealing with: In 2003, she documented and wrote, "Funding Evil: How Terrorism...
- Why "libel Tourism" Is A Serious Matter
Britain may be slowly sinking towards dhimmitude, but that doesn't mean we should allow certain of their unholy practices to determine the future of countries abroad. Case in point: the heroic reporter Dr. Rachel Ehrenfeld, author of Funding Evil:...
Green Energy
A New Way Jihadists Can Muzzle American's Free Speech
It’s known as “libel tourism” and here’s how it works: A book published in the United States names an individual abroad who supports terrorist groups. That individual – for the sake of discussion, let’s say he’s a Saudi petro-billionaire with a home in London – goes online and orders a few copies which arrive in the mail. He takes those books to a British attorney who files a lawsuit complaining that his client has been libeled.The billionaire knows it will be much easier to prevail in the U.K. than it would be in an American court where the First Amendment and decades of case law provide free speech protections. (Under English law, by contrast, the burden in a libel case is on the defendant to prove his innocence – which can be impossible if he’s been using confidential sources or even just sources who don’t want to cross an ocean and take part in a courtroom battle.)
The legal costs are chump change for the billionaire, while few non-fiction writers command similar resources. If the writer chooses not to spend months living in a hotel and fighting it out in court, the case will be forfeit and he will be hit with a “default judgment.” If he doesn’t pay, he’ll never again be able to set foot in the U.K. and other countries that enforce British court judgments.
But more important is this: The message gets sent, loud and clear, to journalists, scholars and publishers, that researching and writing about terrorists and those who enable them is verboten – even in America.
>>>read the whole story
- British Law May Be Changed To Prevent Libel Tourism
Amiel Ungar reports that Britain looks like it's changing its laws to get rid of libel tourism: Britain is about to change its libel laws. This development rates as world news for a few reasons: Britain will no longer be the favored site for "libel...
- Law Reform Is Badly Needed, In Several Places
British MP David Davis has brought up an important subject - the serious need for reformation of Britain's libel laws (Hat tip: Melanie Phillips): As a Parliament, we have failed to defend one of our nation's primary virtues-free speech. We have...
-
CALIFORNIA BECOMES SECOND STATE TO PROTECT AMERICANS FROM FOREIGN LIBEL LAWS byMichael Travis The governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, signed a law yesterday that will protect American journalist and broadcasters from British and foreign libel...
- Don't Let British Law Overrule American Law And The Search For Truth
Rachel Ehrenfeld may be reaching a victory in one of the most important free speech cases in the past three decades. WorldNetDaily has the latest on what Ehrenfeld's been dealing with: In 2003, she documented and wrote, "Funding Evil: How Terrorism...
- Why "libel Tourism" Is A Serious Matter
Britain may be slowly sinking towards dhimmitude, but that doesn't mean we should allow certain of their unholy practices to determine the future of countries abroad. Case in point: the heroic reporter Dr. Rachel Ehrenfeld, author of Funding Evil:...