ITIF Urges Congress To Pass Federal Anti-SLAPP Law
The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation recommended Congress pass a federal law prohibiting strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs). A Monday ITIF report said that “there needs to be a nationwide baseline, not just a patchwork of state laws” to…
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protect against “censorious lawsuits” targeting people who post critical reviews online about merchants or service providers. “By discouraging participation in matters of public interest, including government proceedings, SLAPPs can deter people from exercising free speech and the right to petition, both of which are protected under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution,” ITIF said. “SLAPPs also freeze out many of the wider economic and societal benefits that can result from the information-sharing they obstruct.” Twenty-eight states and the District of Columbia have anti-SLAPP laws, which aren’t uniform and are rendered less effective because so many states don’t have such laws, ITIF said. A federal anti-SLAPP law should include broad speech protections, along with an actual malice provision to protect against misuse of the law, ITIF said. Federal legislation should also include a provision allowing courts to award court and reasonable attorneys’ costs, a provision expediting hearings on motions to dismiss SLAPP lawsuits and a discovery stay provision, ITIF said.