Avoiding Libel when writing an article

[Gulli]

Jurisdiction

Europe

Hi All. I would like to post an article on my blog about a recent bad experience I had with a local employer. As I want to tell the truth I do not want to obfuscate any names or identities in this article, and as I am sure if they see it they will not like it very much, I want to be very sure that I am not infringing any laws and they cannot threaten me with action or libel.

Now as I understand it a statement such as, "In my opinion these are among the most untrustworthy employers I have ever met, I would advise any prospective employees to be very careful when entering into contracts with them." cannot really ever be considered libel as it is stated as an opinion and not a statement of fact, and saying things such as, "They are unpleasant to work for" also escapes accusations of libel as it is not really a statement which can be objectively proven incorrect. I hope that my understanding of this is right.

Where I am a little more unsure is telling the story of what happened. I would like to recount the details of my experience. There are some aspects of the story I can provide proof for, there are others aspects I cannot. For example I want to say what was said in a short meeting we had, but I have no proof of what was said, and even if I tell the truth 100% I cannot prove that it is, it is my word against theirs... am I opening myself up to possible accusations of libel by telling the story including the parts I cannot prove? If so in what way? And how can I tell the story and avoid any possible threats of libel? Is it enough if I say, this happened although I have no proof of it. Normally if you want to avoid libel when quoting what other people say which isn't proven you can say that "allegedly" this happened... but how to protect oneself when saying something? I can't really say "Allegedly we had a meeting and this was said"!!

Also what about the use of images with my article? Can I post a image of the company logo? Can I post images of the owners? A newspaper or news site could write an article about a business and include images of the managers or of the logo or premises, do I have the same rights and protections?

Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

 

[adjusterjack]

Oh, boo hoo. You had a bad experience with an employer. Join the club. We've all been there. Suck it up and get on with your life.

Ranting on a public forum where you name names can get you sued no matter what you write or how you write it. Nothing stops the lawsuit from being handed to you. Once that happens you have to spend thousands (maybe tens of thousands) on a lawyer to defend yourself whether you're right or not.

Besides, nobody will care. The employer will stay in business and will still get people to work there.

My advice: Get over it and move on.

 

[hrforme]

and any new employer could find/have access to your rant/review... do you really want this "opinion" linked to your name forever?

I have to agree with moving on...if you want to write a review, put it on Glassdoor anonymously.

 

[zddoodah]

I want to say what was said in a short meeting we had, but I have no proof of what was said

"Proof" is simply a quantum of evidence that is sufficient to persuade someone that something is or isn't true. You attended this meeting, right? Therefore, your statements about what occurred are evidence. I think what you mean is that you have no corroborating evidence.

am I opening myself up to possible accusations of libel by telling the story including the parts I cannot prove?

Anything you write potentially opens yourself up to "possible accusations of libel."

how can I tell the story and avoid any possible threats of libel?

You cannot foreclose any possibility of a libel allegation.

Is it enough if I say, this happened although I have no proof of it.

That would be a pretty dumb thing to do for reasons that I hope are obvious.

Can I post a image of the company logo? Can I post images of the owners? A newspaper or news site could write an article about a business and include images of the managers or of the logo or premises, do I have the same rights and protections?

I assume you have this ability, and yes.

What exactly would be the purpose of your proposed online tantrum? Do you think anyone who will give a bleep is likely to read it?

 

[Gulli]

Wow, the prejudice here is a little unexpected. Don't know what you people are imagining... firstly I am old enough to not write anything I would later regret, I am not going to go on some crazy rant and make wild accusations, I just want to be able calmly (and truthfully) tell the story of what happened.

I happen to believe quite strongly in the right to free speech, but more importantly that the law not be used as a weapon to silence criticism. Shame you seem to be resigned to that being the case. I really object to exploitative bullies and would feel strongly there should be a public record of it and would want to write about it even if it hadn't happened to me.

Oh and fyi, yeah I have had a lot of jobs and worked for a lot of assholes in my life, and writing this will not make a blind bit of difference for me and I am certainly not expecting to put them out of business, however during my short time there I saw them exploit a large number of other people (one - the only - person who had been there any time said close to 50-100 people a year go though) and maybe an article could help stop others being exploited in the future.

I am not legal expert of course but I was under the impression that you can't just sue anyone for anything at any time, that a lawsuit needs to have some legitimate grounds for deposing it. I couldn't just sue someone for deformation because they wrote my name somewhere.

 

[cbg]

You do understand, don't you, that we handle US law only here and that the law in your unnamed European country may not be the same?

 

[army judge]

The civil tort for DEFORMATION doesn't exist.

You, however, are posting from the EU; specifically France.

I'd be reluctant to assume one can't be sued for libel, slander, DEFAMATION, or the tortious interference with business (profit) in France/EU.

 

[flyingron]

Defamation laws are completely different in Europe than the US. We're not going to be able to address them here.

 

[leslie82]

Wow, the prejudice here is a little unexpected. Don't know what you people are imagining... firstly I am old enough to not write anything I would later regret, I am not going to go on some crazy rant and make wild accusations, I just want to be able calmly (and truthfully) tell the story of what happened.

I happen to believe quite strongly in the right to free speech, but more importantly that the law not be used as a weapon to silence criticism. Shame you seem to be resigned to that being the case. I really object to exploitative bullies and would feel strongly there should be a public record of it and would want to write about it even if it hadn't happened to me.

Oh and fyi, yeah I have had a lot of jobs and worked for a lot of assholes in my life, and writing this will not make a blind bit of difference for me and I am certainly not expecting to put them out of business, however during my short time there I saw them exploit a large number of other people (one - the only - person who had been there any time said close to 50-100 people a year go though) and maybe an article could help stop others being exploited in the future.

I am not legal expert of course but I was under the impression that you can't just sue anyone for anything at any time, that a lawsuit needs to have some legitimate grounds for deposing it. I couldn't just sue someone for deformation because they wrote my name somewhere.

Write what you want or don't write. No one here can stop you and you're not going to get actual legal advice here (read the disclaimer).

Also freedom of speech protects us from the government - not individuals from writing libelous things or saying slanderous speech.

Find somewhere to write it anonymously. Yeah you can sue anyone for anything at any time - there's no guarantee you win.