Slander from a user-posted feedback website

[pleasehelpmeout]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? OR

I run a feedback website for a particular service industry. Today, I received an email, which essentially threatened legal action unless I removed the person's business from my website. They said that negative and untrue feedback had been left about their place of business, and that they did not want to get into a "bantering session" with the person on my website.

Now, I don't think I am required to remove their business information, as that is public information anyone can find. But would I be on the hook for slander if someone left untrue feedback on the site? Can I prevent being liable for that with some sort of disclaimer? And if I were to add a disclaimer now, would I only be able to have said disclaimer take effect on feedback left after the disclaimer was posted?

I am a firm believer in free speech, so I would like to comply with this person's request as little as possible. I can understand the frustration if it is indeed slanderous, but I would rather have them respond to the feedback that the other person left, instead of simply removing it.

 

[quincy]

First, slander is the spoken form of defamation. What is written is called libel.

The writer of the negative and untrue feedback would be the one the business would want to target with any defamation suit. The writer is the one who libeled the business if, in fact, what was written is defamatory at all.

You, as website owner, have the Communications Decency Act, Section 230, to protect you from a defamation suit, or at least a defamation suit loss, under most circumstances. You can do an internet search on the CDA's §230 to see how (or if) it applies to you.

Even with the CDA as potential protection from a lawsuit arising over content posted on your site by others, this does not mean that the business cannot or will not name you in any lawsuit they decide to pursue, anyway. What it does mean is that you have an affirmative defense to any defamation action filed against you should you be named as defendant or co-defendant in a complaint over material created and posted by others to your site.

The business that is the subject of the negative feedback would need a court order to force you to remove the material from your feedback website, if you are not of the mind to remove the offending material voluntarily. To get a court order issued, a court (generally) requires that a suit is filed first, this against the person who wrote the negative feedback and/or you and your website. The business must present to the court evidence showing that the words written can have a defamatory connotation and reputational harm has resulted from the publication and that the material should be removed to prevent further harm.

As for disclaimers, they are good to have in that they can provide notice to visitors of their legal responsibility for what they write and inform visitors of the lack of legal liability held by the website over content posted by others. A disclaimer, however, does not prevent a lawsuit from being filed against you and your website, nor will a disclaimer protect you from a lawsuit loss should you violate a law for which you can be held responsible. A disclaimer, in other words, does not provide you with any sort of immunity.

If you value the free speech of your posters, then you can choose to leave the review in its place and you can inform the business of your decision. I would check everything out with an attorney in your area first, however, to make sure that you cannot, in fact, be held liable for the posting as it appears. A review of your website and its content, and a review of your communications with the business, is necessary to give you an accurate picture as to where you stand legally. As I said earlier, CDA's Section 230 provides protection to a website owner under most circumstances. Not all.

Good luck.

 

[pleasehelpmeout]

Thank you very much for the reply - that is exactly what I needed to know.