Can content mills sue freelance writers?

[Happyhead]

Jurisdiction

New York

Hi!

Thousands of freelance writers today write for what are known as "content mills". These are sites that bombard the internet with content, written to conform to certain algorithms. The pay is generally low (around $1 per 100 words) but the work is easy and it's good supplemental income.

Anyway, a friend of mine writes for a number of these mills. He got an email the other day from the owners stating that they had lost a client due to poor quality of work on his end. He got canned from that mill (no big deal, since he writes for many others), but he was wondering this:

Can they try to sue him?

So the question is this: Can a freelance writer be sued for poor quality work? Keep in mind there are no copyright issues here, no slander or falsified information, just general low quality work that cost them some business.

Thanks

 

[army judge]

Hi!

Thousands of freelance writers today write for what are known as "content mills". These are sites that bombard the internet with content, written to conform to certain algorithms. The pay is generally low (around $1 per 100 words) but the work is easy and it's good supplemental income.

Anyway, a friend of mine writes for a number of these mills. He got an email the other day from the owners stating that they had lost a client due to poor quality of work on his end. He got canned from that mill (no big deal, since he writes for many others), but he was wondering this:

Can they try to sue him?

So the question is this: Can a freelance writer be sued for poor quality work? Keep in mind there are no copyright issues here, no slander or falsified information, just general low quality work that cost them some business.

Thanks

Anyone can be sued for anything.
But, why would someone bother suing him?
He's not rich, and underperforming, even failing to perform (in the view of his client) doesn't constitute a lawsuit upon which the person could recover.

In any successful lawsuit two elements must be present in order to be successful: a cause of action and damages, alleged to have been caused by the defendant. There must be a nexus between the defendant and the damages alleged to have been caused by his or her actions.

Both are lacking in your scenario, and lawsuits cost time and money. You don't sue people working for a buck to produce a hundred words.

 

[adjusterjack]

Can they try to sue him?

There is no TRY to sue. There is only sue or not sue.

Can a freelance writer be sued for poor quality work?

A question that begins with the word "can" must often be answered "yes" because the word "can" denotes a person's ability to do something, not whether that something will be successful or is right or wrong.

Keep in mind there are no copyright issues here, no slander or falsified information, just general low quality work that cost them some business.

Whether such a lawsuit could be successful depends on a variety of factors including the terms and conditions of the writers contract. If a certain level of performance or quality is required by the contract, a breach of those provisions could result in a lawsuit.

That being said, as a practical matter, I doubt if your friend has anything to lose any sleep over.