Legal Question in Employment Law in New Jersey
Defamation
I recently was the subject of the CIO's wrath at a meeting in which he want on for 10 minutes about how I handled a situation improperly. He said things like ''This person dropped the ball, handled the situation unprofessionally and this person has a history of doing this type of thing. He said this among other harsh comments in front of 50 of my colleagues. In fact this meeting was called for this purpose alone. I have been held back from promotion and have been demoted and back where I originally started with the company. There is more to this but this is basic question. Can I sue as I have been ridiculed in front of my peers many of whom now feel I am a failure. I must now quit as I have no future at this company whereas a few months ago I was acting supervisor for computer support team of 11 people.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Defamation
An action in defamation requires an untrue statement of fact. Is there any validity in the comments that were made against you, regardless as to how insensitive they were? If not, then you may have an action for defamation. However, if the comments were true, abet communicated in a nasty manner, then you would not have an actionable defamation of character claim. I would speak to an employment attorney before you give notice that you are quiting. Feel free to call me at 908.301.9095