Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Florida
defamation of character
I have a family member who is hospitalized in the ICU. The child of this person spoke in private with the hospital social worker and the patient's doctor concering her concerns with a siblings state of mind. The child expressed the opinion that said sibling may be manic depressive and was concerned about the actions of said sibling upsetting the parent. The child also expressed said concerns with the spouse and children of the sibling, in private discussion and in a private e mail communication. The sibling is now threatening legal action saying it is defamation of character. The hospital is in Florida and all concerned reside in New York. Does she have any legal grounds?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: defamation of character
An intentionally untrue statement of fact about a person constitutes defamation. Under certain circumstances, no damages are required to maintain such an action (known as defamation per se); under other circumstances, a plaintiff must establish that he/she suffered damages as a result of the defamatory statement.
If the one sibling does not suffer from manic depression or any other mental/emotional illness -- and the other sibling either knows or reasonably should know this -- then the first sibling may have a defamation claim against the other. Whether this is the type of defamation that would require proof of damages would take some research.
-- Kenneth J. Ashman; www.AshmanLawOffices.com
This information is intended for general informational purposes only and is not intended to create an attorney-client relationship, which, under the policies of Ashman Law Offices, LLC, can only be created by execution of a formal retention agreement.
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