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Defamation Law: is this worth persuing.

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PayrollHRGuy

Senior Member
He confronted me before DSS started there investigation and stated he would call even if it meant I would never talk to him again. All this is because he felt my house was unsuitable for a baby.
And when you say that in court the other side wins. The person didn't make the report to injure you. They made it because of of true concern for a child.
 


quincy

Senior Member
And when you say that in court the other side wins. The person didn't make the report to injure you. They made it because of of true concern for a child.
That is the presumption, at least, and why reports to CPS are covered by a qualified privilege. It is a tough presumption to defeat.
 

PayrollHRGuy

Senior Member
Did you notice this particular phrasing, "All this is because he felt my house was unsuitable for a baby."

That would sound to me if I were on a jury that the OP doesn't think and house that is unsuitable for a baby is a big deal.
 

quincy

Senior Member
Did you notice this particular phrasing, "All this is because he felt my house was unsuitable for a baby."

That would sound to me if I were on a jury that the OP doesn't think and house that is unsuitable for a baby is a big deal.
Apparently an investigation by CPS determined the neighbor's complaint was unfounded.

"Unsuitable" to one person may not be considered unsuitable to others. The neighbor's report to CPS would have been based on his idea of what is unsuitable.

It is what the neighbor has said to others in the community that could form the basis of a lawsuit. What EXACTLY has been communicated needs to be known. It appears that whatever was said has led to a shunning of TillbyA, however, and that can be an indication of reputational harm. It can also be due to factors totally unrelated.
 

PayrollHRGuy

Senior Member
But this wasn't a false statement of fact. The person that reported stated their opinion to CPS that there was an issue and may or may not have repeated that opinion to neighbors. The OP has not even stated that the reporter told anyone anything that wasn't the truth. It simply didn't rise to the level that the CPS did anything about it.

And the point I was making in the first place was that the OPs own words could be used as a defense in any legal case.
 

quincy

Senior Member
But this wasn't a false statement of fact. The person that reported stated their opinion to CPS that there was an issue and may or may not have repeated that opinion to neighbors. The OP has not even stated that the reporter told anyone anything that wasn't the truth. It simply didn't rise to the level that the CPS did anything about it.

And the point I was making in the first place was that the OPs own words could be used as a defense in any legal case.
We don't know what the neighbor has said. We don't know if what he said was true or pure opinion (opinion that does not state or imply false fact).

We know that CPS determined the neighbor's report unfounded. The report is immune from suit anyway, without proof it was made with actual malice.

We know that TillbyA's neighbor has spoken to others about her - comments that are NOT privileged - and we know TillbyA has experienced shunning in her community.

Connecting all of this to support a defamation lawsuit would not necessarily be easy nor would it necessarily be a successful or worthwhile pursuit.
 

Ohiogal

Queen Bee
We don't know what the neighbor has said. We don't know if what he said was true or pure opinion (opinion that does not state or imply false fact).

We know that CPS determined the neighbor's report unfounded. The report is immune from suit anyway, without proof it was made with actual malice.

We know that TillbyA's neighbor has spoken to others about her - comments that are NOT privileged - and we know TillbyA has experienced shunning in her community.

Connecting all of this to support a defamation lawsuit would not necessarily be easy nor would it necessarily be a successful or worthwhile pursuit.
We don't even know that the neighbor made the report as referents are confidential.
 

quincy

Senior Member
We don't even know that the neighbor made the report as referents are confidential.
True. We don't know more than we do know. But I believe TillbyA said that the neighbor said he was the one who made the report to CPS.

If TillbyA wishes to pursue a legal action against the neighbor for spreading stories about her, she will need to sit down with an attorney in her area for a personal review. It would help before this review if she has evidence of what the neighbor has said to members of her community - perhaps someone who heard the comments can provide a witness statement.

I am not at all sure there is a suit here worth pursuing.
 

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