Miami Gossip: What Can You Do When Someone Lies About You - Under Florida Law

Today, the media is taking it on the chin as US Weekly fell for the Onion's satirical humor site's coverage of Sarah Palin's "comments" on Christina Aguilera's mistake during her Super Bowl rendition of the national anthem. Seems US Weekly thought that the joke was real, and put things up there as real quotes (see the screenshot here on Mediaite).

Meanwhile, the most commented story over at TMZ right now is a post concerning Oksana Grigorieva, the mother to Mel Gibson's child who is fighting him for custody and support right now. Seems Oksana is being investigated for extortion charges, where it's claimed that Oksana was asking for bucks from Mel to not spread the word about him.

Personal Injury - When Words Do Hurt You, What Can You Do? Sue.

Privacy laws exist as part of federal and state legislation in order to protect the individual. There are also laws to protect an individual's reputation - things like defamation law.

It is illegal in Florida to write bad things about someone on a blog or website that is harmful and false. If the writer goes so far as to threaten bodily injury, then it becomes a crime (a felony) under Florida Statute 836.10.

Often, bad things are said about someone as part of an ongoing controversy:

• Child custody or child support is already being fought over, and suddenly, your reputation is being maligned by your opponent.
• You're suing the driver of the car that hit you, resulting in serious injuries, and now you hear they are claiming you're a drunk, a liar, or mentally ill.

Sometimes, you're being gossiped about it a bad way, and it's coming out of the blue.

• You're at a party, and learn that lots of people are under the wrong impression about you, and you investigate only to find that the origins are from a fabrication spread by your boyfriend's ex.
• Someone writes bad stuff about you on their blog.

There are as many examples of words causing harm as there are people who talk.

So, when is it something that you have to deal with, and when does it become something that constitutes personal injury under Florida law?

When you have been tangibly harmed. If you are a public person, or a celebrity, then things are different. Sarah Palin and Mel Gibson are held to different standards than the rest of us, because they are in the public eye. If you are not a public figure, then there are civil laws in place in Florida that allow you to sue for money damages as a result of this gossip.

Think this is silly?

Consider this: in 2006, a Florida woman was awarded $11,000,000 in a defamation case that she brought after she was labeled a "con artist," a "crook," and a "fraud," on the web by a woman in Louisiana.

Your personal reputation has value. Sometimes, that value has to be protected in a court of law.

By Bryant Esquenazi on February 10, 2011 1:40 PM