"Defamation of character" is a catch-all term for any statement that hurts someone's reputation. Written defamation is called "libel," while spoken defamation is called "slander." Because written statements last longer than spoken statements, most courts and insurance companies consider libel more harmful than slander.
Defamation is not a crime in most states, but it is a "tort" (a civil wrong, rather than a criminal wrong). The person who has been defamed (the "plaintiff") can sue the person who did the defaming (the "defendant") for damages.
Defamation law tries to balance competing interests: On the one hand, someone shouldn't be able to ruin your life by telling lies about you; on the other hand, people should be able to speak freely without fear of litigation over every insult, disagreement, or mistake. Political and social debate is important in a free society, and we don't all share the same opinions or beliefs. For example, political opponents often reach opposite conclusions from the same facts, and editorial cartoonists often exaggerate facts to make their point.
Defamation happens when a person makes a false statement—verbally or in writing—about someone else that damages that person's reputation. Defamation laws vary from state to state, but the basic principles of defamation law are the same in every state.
A plaintiff suing for defamation typically must show all of the following:
In the context of defamation law, "published" doesn't necessarily mean the statement was printed in a book or magazine. A defamatory statement is published when the defendant says or shows the statement to anyone other than the plaintiff. Slanderous statements can be published in a speech, at a town hall meeting, or during cocktail party chatter. Libelous statements can be published in a newspaper, book, email, text message, tweet, or social media post.
Only false statements of fact can be defamatory. Even terribly mean or disparaging statements aren't defamatory if they are true. Most opinions don't count as defamation because they can't be proved to be objectively false. For example, when a book reviewer writes, "This is the worst book I've read all year," she's not defaming the author, she's stating her opinion about the book.
The statement must be "injurious." Since the purpose of defamation law is to compensate people for damage to their reputations, defamation plaintiffs must show how their reputations were hurt by the false statements. A defamatory statement is injurious if it, for example, gets you fired, causes you to lose customers, causes you to be shunned by your friends, or leads to you being harassed online.
Some categories of false statements—called libel per se or slander per se—are so widely understood to be harmful that they are presumed to be injuries. Examples include statements that falsely claim that someone:
Finally, to qualify as a defamatory statement, the offending statement must be "unprivileged." If someone makes a false statement about you, but the statement is privileged, you can't sue that person for defamation. Lawmakers decide which types of speech are privileged so that speakers in certain situations aren't limited by worries that they will be sued for defamation. Examples of privileged statements include statements made during judicial proceedings, by high government officials, and by legislators during legislative debates.
Defamation can take many forms. In 2022, an American teenager named Hans Niemann defeated Magnus Carlsen, the world's best chess player, in a tournament with a $350,000 prize. Mr. Carlsen responded by accusing Niemann of cheating.
Nieman then filed a $100 million defamation lawsuit against Carlsen, Chess.com, and Hikaru Nakamura, another top chess player who amplified the cheating allegations on his popular Twitch channel. Niemann's lawyers wrote in their complaint that Niemann is suing to "recover from the devastating damages that defendants inflicted upon his reputation, career, and life by egregiously defaming him."
Carlsen's lawyers moved to dismiss the lawsuit, claiming, among other things, that the allegedly defamatory statements were protected by privilege and that he was voicing his sincerely held opinions, not facts.
The Niemann case is an example of a work-related defamation claim. Other examples of potential defamation include:
Courts look carefully at the context of a potentially defamatory statement as well as its substance to decide whether it's an opinion or a factual statement.
Each state sets a deadline—called the "statute of limitations"—for filing different kinds of civil lawsuits. Most states allow plaintiffs somewhere between one to three years from the time the defamatory statement was made to get their defamation lawsuits filed.
If you miss the deadline to file your claim, the court will almost certainly dismiss your case and you'll miss your chance to clear your name and get compensation for your damaged reputation and lost opportunities.
Learn about defamation, libel, and slander statute of limitations.
Defamation claims are complicated and hard to prove because defamation laws have to strike a balance between allowing people to protect their reputations and allowing the free exchange of information, ideas, and opinions.
You can defend yourself against a defamation lawsuit if the statement you made was:
Learn more about privileges and defenses in defamation cases.
Defamation lawsuits are difficult to prove. A landmark study, called "The Iowa Research Project," reviewed almost every libel case between 1974 and 1984 and found that about 90% of plaintiffs lost in court, but roughly 90% of the plaintiffs who lost said that the lawsuit "accomplished something."
In other words, if you've suffered financial and social harm because someone is spreading lies about it, it might be worth filing a defamation lawsuit even if you don't end up winning a big money judgment at the end of the case.
Talk to a lawyer so you can get the facts you need to decide whether pursuing a defamation lawsuit is worth the emotional and financial toll it will take on you. A lawyer can answer your questions, help you figure out how much your defamation claim might be worth, and review the pros and cons of going to court.
The public has a right to criticize the people who govern and influence them, so public figures have less protection from defamation than private individuals. Public figures must show that they were defamed with actual malice. In other words, they must show that the person who defamed them made the false statement knowing it was false, or with reckless disregard for the truth. Public figures include politicians, movie stars, professional athletes, and celebrities.
Private figures only need to show that the person who defamed them acted negligently (carelessly) when making the false statement.
No two defamation cases are the same, so it's impossible to put a dollar amount on a typical defamation case. But damages in a defamation case generally include compensation for:
Plaintiffs in some states might also be able to collect punitive damages if the defendant's conduct was outrageously bad. Punitive damages are meant to punish defendants for appalling behavior, rather than compensate plaintiffs for their losses.
In 2022, the actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for defamation after she wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post about domestic violence and referred to herself as "a public figure representing domestic abuse." The jury sided with Depp and awarded him $10.35 million. Depp's multimillion-dollar award was based, in part, on high-paying acting roles he claimed to have missed out on because of Heard's defamatory statements. Heard filed an appeal, citing "errors" made by the court, but eventually agreed to pay Depp $1 million and drop her appeal.
Not all defamation cases end in blockbuster awards. Some end with verdicts in favor of the defendant. Others end with a jury finding that a statement was defamatory, but declining to award any damages. For example, a father sued his son for defamation during a grandparent custody dispute. The father said the son falsely accused him of physical and sexual abuse to damage his reputation and hurt his business. The jury found that the son's statements were defamatory and untrue, but declined to award any damages. (Cesare v. Cesare, 2011 WL 2292222 (Pa.Com.Pl. 2011).)
As you can see, defamation awards vary widely. The only way to get an accurate sense of how much your defamation claim might be worth is to talk to a lawyer.
A defamation case isn't like a simple car accident claim that you might be able to handle yourself. They often involve complex legal issues and may require expert witnesses to weigh in on damages. Having a legal expert on your side can make all the difference.
Defamation cases tend to be emotionally charged. A lawyer can offer an objective perspective when things get heated and you need to make rational decisions about how to proceed.
Learn more about hiring a lawyer
Defamation laws protect people from the actual harm that untrue statements can cause, while still allowing people to speak freely about important topics. It's a complicated area of law that changes all the time as technology changes how people communicate.
To get started with your defamation claim:
A lawyer can answer your questions and help you decide if, when, and where to file a lawsuit. When you're ready, you can connect with a lawyer directly from this page for free.