Fake reviews putting a damper on your business?
Is your privacy being violated on the internet?
LATE NIGHT LAW is here for you. Whether you are facing cyber harassment, doxxing, libel, slander, defamation, cyberbullying, revenge porn, or invasion of privacy…. LATE NIGHT LAW is New Mexico’s ONLY dedicated defamation law firm. We take defamation claims to the bank.
Defamation is a form of unprotected speech that occurs when someone tells lies that damage another person’s reputation. Though recognized as a civil cause of action for hundreds of years, defamation is an especially growing area of legal practice today. This is because the internet has given us unprecedented freedom to publicly give vent to our impulses by ranting, raving, and putting each other on blast. As a quick perusal of Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, Instagram, and a hundred other platforms will show, there is no shortage of potentially defamatory speech on the internet.
When considering bringing a defamation action, it must be kept in mind that truth is always an absolute defense against defamation claims, meaning that if your detractor is telling the truth about you, you’d better think twice before suing him or her. Claims for defamation based on things people say in court or in the course of an official investigation are also protected against defamation actions, even if a person lies under oath.
Keeping all that in mind, the required elements of a defamation claim are: a false statement, to a third party, that damages the plaintiff’s reputation. If the false statement is made about a public figure such as a politician or celebrity, the plaintiff must prove that it was made with actual malice—meaning that it was made intentionally, or recklessly. If the false statement is made about a private figure (that is, an everyday citizen who is not famous or in government) the plaintiff only needs to show that the false statement was made negligently.
New Mexico courts treat defamation in a unique way. This is for two reasons.
First, in New Mexico, a plaintiff alleging defamation must prove actual damages. This means you must prove your financial losses or the monetary value of the reputational injury the defendant’s false statement caused. Historically, defamation plaintiffs did not always need to prove actual damages. Under the somewhat archaic doctrine of “defamation per se,” the courts in many states recognize that certain forms of defamation inherently damage a person’s reputation, and the plaintiff need not prove actual damages, but only needs to prove what was said. There are four forms of false statement that qualify as defamation per se: (i) falsely accusing another of committing a crime; (ii) falsely accusing another of misconduct connected to their trade or profession; (iii) falsely accusing another of having a communicable (contagious) disease; or (iv) falsely “imputing unchastity to a woman.” Unfortunately for defamation plaintiffs in New Mexico, the New Mexico Supreme Court abolished the doctrine of defamation per se in 2012.
Second, New Mexico makes no distinction between libel and slander. Historically and still today in many states, libel is defined as defamation that occurs in print, and slander is defined as defamation that occurs verbally. The New Mexico Supreme Court regards this distinction as unnecessary, and does not recognize it.
As already mentioned, in addition to these caveats governing defamation law in New Mexico, it must be kept in mind that in all fifty states, statements made in the course of litigation or in an official investigation enjoy what’s called absolute privilege from defamation liability. That means that an attorney or a witness in a court case or government investigation cannot be sued for defamation for the things they say during the proceedings. Though attorneys and witnesses may incur other liability such as criminal liability for perjury or disciplinary liability for attorney dishonesty, to allow a cause of action for defamation for statements made in official proceedings would effectively double the number of cases the courts have to deal with, because in most litigation, each side effectively claims that the other side is lying.
Defamation today comes in new and distinct forms. Fake reviews are one example of this. If you own a business, especially a retail or consumer-facing business, Google reviews are a very serious matter. At Late Night Law, we have seen a business hire an offshore spam farm to inundate their competitor’s Google search results with negative reviews. We have also seen a business falsely flag its competitor’s Instagram page for alleged hate speech and counterfeiting. As Meta downsizes and replaces people with AI, it can become nightmarish to get an Instagram business account restored. For some businesses, that’s real damage, and in a drastic situation where a business is uniquely dependent on its social media account, it may be worthwhile to file a John Doe claim (that is, a claim against an unknown defendant) and then subpoena the social media platform to reveal the identity or the IP address of the person who made the false report.
In addition to fake reviews and other, shall we say… B2B defamation, there is a great deal of interpersonal defamation over the internet nowadays. For example, if someone goes on Facebook and falsely accuses you of some heinous act, you would have provable damages that might be worth suing for if you lost a job as a result of that defamation. We see examples of this all the time. At Late Night Law, our approach is usually to ascertain the identity of the defamer and send them a letter threatening a lawsuit. If that doesn’t stop the defamation, we would consult with you about filing a lawsuit against that person, and plan out the next steps based on your objectives.
When defamation is alleged, often there are related causes of action that go along with the defamatory situation. For example, if you lost customers or business partners because of defamation by a third person, a claim for “tortious interference with contract” may be in order. If you lost your job due to defamation by a co-worker, you may have a claim against your former employer for wrongful termination if the incident was not investigated properly. And if an incident of defamation was especially repugnant, you may have a claim against your detractor for intentional infliction of emotional distress, or even “loss of consortium” if the defamation estranged you from a loved one. Another claim commonly seen adjacent to a defamation claim, is invasion of privacy. These are only possibilities, however, and individual situations may vary.
If you are being defamed online, you may want to consider taking legal action. Call LATE NIGHT LAW at (505) 225-2623 for a free consultation today. We always take the time to listen. Call LATE NIGHT LAW to speak to a New Mexico defamation attorney today.
Nothing on this website should be taken as legal advice, nor should it be taken to mean that you have an attorney-client relationship with LATE NIGHT LAW. We evaluate potential client matters on a case-by-case basis. Should you consult with us and we decline to take your case (or if you consult with us and you decide not to work with us) under New Mexico law you will still have confidentiality in those consultations.
Call LATE NIGHT LAW today at (505) 225-2623, or email aaron@latenightlaw.com.