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Home > Employment > Employee Litigation > Defamation
Defamation Claims Attorneys
in Denver and throughout Colorado and Wyoming
A claim for defamation may arise in the employment context. The basics of a defamation claim are (1) a defamatory statement concerning another; (2) made to a third party; (3) where the statement is, at a minimum, negligently made; (4) and either special or actual damages. There are different types of defamatory statements: a spoken statement is sometimes referred to as slander and a written statement is sometimes referred to as libel.
Generally, defamatory content is judged by the ears of the third party who receives the statement. If the statement, considered as a whole, does not prejudice the employee in the eyes of a substantial and respectable minority of the community, then the statement is generally not considered defamatory. Similarly, if the statement is one of opinion, rather than fact, it may not be considered to be defamatory.
In every defamation case, two issues will always have great importance in any claim for defamation. Is there a First Amendment right to make the statement? If so, then a claim for defamation cannot succeed. Second, what are the damages? Often, the reputational damage is so minimal as to make a defamation claim not worthy of being brought.
In the employment law context, a defamatory statement may be actionable if the statement impacts the defamed person's career within the business. Questions to ask include whether the defamatory statement led to the defamed person losing his job or the opportunity for advancement within the company.
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