Exam
THINGS YOU SAY ON SOCIAL MEDIA Outcome of Case #1: The court agreed with the
commentator, finding that “the tweet cannot be read in isolation, but in the context of the entire discussion. In this case, the tweet was made as part of a heated Internet debate about [the horse owner’s] responsibil- ity for the disappearance of her horse. Furthermore, it cannot be read literally without regard to the way in which a reasonable person would interpret. . . . [The tweet] was obviously intended as criticism—that is, as opinion—not as a statement of fact. The complaint therefore cannot base a claim of defamation on that statement.” The lawsuit was dismissed.
Outcome of Case #2: The lawsuit was dismissed,
but the court suggested that the woman intends to refile her lawsuit in a different court in the future. Social media gives the average person an oppor-
tunity to “publish” statements about private persons, and it is clear that many people are quick to share their thoughts, impressions and opinions online. The law of defamation is somewhat convoluted and dif- ficult to explain both accurately and concisely. But
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a good rule of thumb is that the law prohibits a per- son from publishing a statement “with the intent to discredit another.” (There are, of course, exceptions for commenting about public officials.) But when posting comments online do not lie or make things up, and when expressing an opinion about another person (particularly an inflammatory one!), an easy way to protect yourself from a lawsuit is to qualify the statement with “IMHO” (“in my humble opinion”).
About the author: Krysia Carmel Nelson is an at- torney from Virginia who is a nationally-recognized expert in equine law. Attorney Nelson represents horse owners, train- ers, riders, breeders, equestrian facilities, farms, clubs and associa-
tions across all nationally and internationally recognized disciplines. As a lifelong equestrian, she currently rides and competes her Hanoverian Affirmed on Appeal in the amateur hunters. She can be reached at
eqlaw@aol.com.
Trip will include optional workshops hosted by the World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses in São Paulo
www.jeanllewellyn.com 54 September/October 2014
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