Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

Elements of Slander

You ask several different questions: (1) what are the elements of a cause of action for slander; (2) what are the elements of a cause of action for harassment; (3) What constitutes sufficient evidence of slander; and (4) what constitutes sufficient evidence of harassment.

I'll take the last two first. There is no general answer as to what evidence will suffice to win on either of these causes of action (or on just about any other, for that matter). You should consult with an attorney about the particular facts of your case and see what he/she thinks.

The elements of slander are: (1) A publication (meaning an oral or written statement); (2) The publication must be made by the defendant; (3) The publication must be made to a third party (e.g. NOT just to the plaintiff); (4) The publication must be false (a true statement, however embarrassing, is not defamatory, although it may be actionable as an invasion of privacy);(5) The publication must expose the plaintiff to "contempt, ridicule or disgrace" or cause him/her "to be shunned or avoided" or "which has a tendency to injure" the plaintiff in plaintiff's occupation;(5) The publication must not be privileged (e.g. statements made during the course of litigation, by a legislator in the course of his/her duties, or other limited circumstances are not actionable).

The amount of damages for defamation will generally be quite limited unless the plaintiff can show a definite impact; this impact need not be financial, however.

"Harassment" is a vague term, and I would need to know specifically what the complained-of conduct involves before I could tell you what type of claim could be made or what the elements of the claim would be.

Feel free to contact me directly if you like.