All Articles
Everything MLRC has published, in any publication, since 2017.
Internet Archive Slammed in Decision Rejecting Mass Distribution of Unlicensed Ebooks Under ‘Controlled Digital Lending’ Theory
Jack Browning, Linda Steinman and Liz McNamaraJudge Koeltl delivered a decision definitively characterizing Internet Archive’s actions as brazen copyright infringement.
Summary Judgment Awarded to Obstacle Course Racing Blogger
Madeleine Blair, Isabel White and Lindsey FloydIn a 74-page decision, the court dismissed all defamation and defamation per se claims against Davis for insufficient evidence of actual malice.
D.C. Court of Appeal Affirms Anti-SLAPP Fee Award in “Steele Dossier” Case
Chuck TobinThe court’s decision significantly strengthens arguments for defendants to recover fees under the District’s anti-SLAPP law, including the fees they expend in litigating entitlement to fees.
Arizona Supreme Court Finds Radio Host’s Statements Protected as Opinion, Political Speech
Michael J. LambertThe Arizona Supreme Court has issued a ringing endorsement for the safeguards provided to opinions and political speech in a defamation case involving a local radio talk show host.
South Dakota Supreme Court Unseals Billionaire’s Search Warrant Materials, Again!
Jeremy KutnerA year and a half after the South Dakota Supreme Court unsealed search warrant materials related to billionaire T. Denny Sanford, who was under investigation for possession of child pornography, the court finished the job, unsealing the underlying affidavits that finally told the public what the investigation was all about.
Long-Run Effects of Dominion v. Fox
George FreemanThe judge’s decision to dismiss any argument based on the neutral reportage privilege was a lost opportunity. It could have corrected one of the few areas where good journalism and the law diverge.
Stop the Steal Organizer’s Narrowed Defamation Claim Proceeds to Discovery
Matthew CateRuling on a motion to dismiss, Judge Pitman held that an article’s characterizations of plaintiff as a “Jan. 6 Capitol riot organizer” and a person who “helped coordinate the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection” were capable of being proven true or false, and therefore actionable in defamation, and that Bostic adequately pleaded the defendants published them…
Significant FOIA Win to Gain Access to MLAT Records on Mexico’s Former Secretary of Defense
Victoria Baranetsky, Dara Gray, and Anise McKinneyBeyond denying the use of a categorical exemption, this case is a unique win because it marks the first time a court has ordered a search of documents when a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty is at issue.
Satanic Temple Lawsuit Against Newsweek Magazine Largely Dismissed
Cameron Stracher and Sara TesorieroThe Southern District of New York held that twenty-one of the twenty-two statements were not defamatory as a matter of law.
New York First Department Affirms Dismissal of “Brooklyn Land Shark” Case
Matthew LeishA defendant who prevails on an anti-SLAPP motion to dismiss may recover its attorneys’ fees without the need to file a counterclaim or a separate lawsuit.
Ten Questions to a Media Lawyer: Sigmund Schutz
Maine lawyer on breaking into the business, high profile cases, places to eat in Portland, and more.
Agent of “Notorious RBG” Photographer Lacks Statutory Copyright Standing
Amanda BarkinThe art world’s obsession with using RBG as its muse, lives on. As does legal controversy that surrounds that art and its reproduction.
A Sunshine Double: Recapping MLRC Conferences in Los Angeles and Miami
George FreemanMRLC's executive director on the Entertainment Law and Latin American Media Law Conferences, held in March.
Utah Becomes First State to Regulate Social Media Use by Minors
David C. ReymannThe two laws have drawn national attention in part because of the increasing focus on supposed harms social media platforms are causing minors, but also because they test, if not far exceed, the outer constitutional limits of regulating private speech.
Third Time’s a Charm: Tennessee Federal Court Dismisses Complaint Against Comedian Kathy Griffin for Lack of Personal Jurisdiction
Michael J. GrygielThis decision contributes to a body of developing case law in which courts have refused to indulge forum-shopping attempts by putative plaintiffs aggrieved by criticism on social media.
Large Coalition of Media and Non-Media Groups Push Back on Proposed Changes to Texas’s Anti-SLAPP Statute
Reid PillifantEliminating the automatic stay would loosen free-speech protections for all Texans, but the bill stands to have a particularly detrimental effect on media organizations that operate in the state.
Texas Supreme Court Reaffirms Protection for Opinion
Samuel W. CalkinsThe Court held unanimously that the statements were opinions in the context of the national abortion debate.
Filmmakers & Netflix Win Summary Judgment in “Making a Murderer” Defamation Lawsuit
Kevin VickThe Court’s summary judgment ruling was a ringing affirmation of Sullivan and the importance of legal protections for free speech.
Utah Becomes Fourth State to Enact the Uniform Public Expression Protection Act
Jeffrey J. Hunt and David C. ReymannThe road to enactment of UPEPA in Utah had its share of twists and turns. In the end, it was some good timing and the involvement of a respected former state legislator that made the difference.
The Court and the Press in the Murdaugh Murders Trial
Jay BenderOn balance, the press members who were in Walterboro deserve as high a grade as the individuals who worked very hard to fulfill the provision in the South Carolina Constitution that all courts are public.
