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My wife's ex wrote letter to my employer

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PapaNEO

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? Utah
A letter was sent to my employer by my wife's ex-husband. In the letter there were false statements made about me and actions I have supposedly taken. Is this Libel? My employer gave the letter to my supervisor, who called me in for a meeting in her office. I was not disciplined, but the letter will go in my file and may damage my future plans for my career. If I were to sue the ex-husband would the burden of proof be on me to prove the events did not take place or on him to prove they did? Both sides would have witnesses stating different sides to the story. There is nothing in the police reports stating any of this is fact. What do I do now?
 


cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
The burden of proof would be on you to show not only that what he said in the letter was false, but also that he KNEW it was false. Not a misunderstanding, not something he honestly but incorrectly believed was true, not a difference of opinion, not that he jumped to conclusions on insufficient evidence, but that he knowingly and deliberately LIED.

The burden of proof would also be on you to show that you HAD suffered damages. Not that you might at some unspecified time in future be affected by the letter, but that you WERE damaged by it.
 
M

meganproser

Guest
In the letter there were false statements made about me and actions I have supposedly taken. Is this Libel?

You need to give us the exact statements that were made. Were the statements false?

If I were to sue the ex-husband would the burden of proof be on me to prove the events did not take place or on him to prove they did?

If the defendant chooses to use a “truth” defense, he has to prove that what he said was true. You then defend against his accusations.

Both sides would have witnesses stating different sides to the story. There is nothing in the police reports stating any of this is fact. What do I do now?

If the accusations against you are not the type of things that can be proven true or false, it will be very hard for you to file a defamation claim. This is why we need to know what the guy said about you.

If the statements qualify as libel per se, you do not need to show any damages.

You don't have to prove what the defendant believed. What you need to prove is that he acted maliciously or with a reckless disregard for the truth.
 
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