Defamation
EPGP 2013 Alok Jain | 1314005 | Guru Nandan Singh | 1314019 | Nitin Agarwal NK | 1314032 | Rahul Kumar | 1314040 | Rahul Singh | 1314041 |
Online Defamation – What does law say?
Table of Contents
1. Introduction 3 1.1 What is Defamation? 3 1.2 How about freedom of speech? 4 1.3 Online Defamation 5
2. Recourses to defamation in India 5
3. Can online defamation law be misused? 8
4. Conclusion 10
5. References 12
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Introduction
1.1 What is Defamation?
(Shakespear's Othello, Act-II, Scene III, pp.167)
A good name is worth more than good riches. Good name in man and woman, dear my Lord Is the immediate jewel of their souls; Who steals my purse, steals trash; its something nothing; T'was mine, t'is, and has been slave to thousands; But he that filches from me my good name, robs me of that which not enriches him And makes me poor indeed. [1]
As per www.wsj.com “Defamation is a legal wrong emerging from an act of injuring a person’s reputation and sullying their character without lawful justification or excuse.”
In history, the root of this misconduct is in the act of shouting. The Praetorian Edict circa 130 AD had made the act of cursive public pronouncement, through shouting, to be gravely punishable. The code had declared: "qui, advesus bonos mores convicium cui fecisse cuiusve opera factum esse dicitur, quo adversus bonos mores convicium Weret, in eum iudicium dabo." That is, shouting words and invectives contrary to public morals shall be punishable. [2]
Everyone has right to good reputation. Defamation is a false and unprivileged statement of fact that is harmful to someone's reputation or good name.
Defamation is of two kinds:
Slander – there is no permanency about slander because it is a spoken statement. It can also be a non verbal gesture or something similar. Example:
“B tells C that A is a fraud. Because of this C refuses to do business with A and
Online Defamation – What does law say?
Table of Contents
1. Introduction 3 1.1 What is Defamation? 3 1.2 How about freedom of speech? 4 1.3 Online Defamation 5
2. Recourses to defamation in India 5
3. Can online defamation law be misused? 8
4. Conclusion 10
5. References 12
-------------------------------------------------
Introduction
1.1 What is Defamation?
(Shakespear's Othello, Act-II, Scene III, pp.167)
A good name is worth more than good riches. Good name in man and woman, dear my Lord Is the immediate jewel of their souls; Who steals my purse, steals trash; its something nothing; T'was mine, t'is, and has been slave to thousands; But he that filches from me my good name, robs me of that which not enriches him And makes me poor indeed. [1]
As per www.wsj.com “Defamation is a legal wrong emerging from an act of injuring a person’s reputation and sullying their character without lawful justification or excuse.”
In history, the root of this misconduct is in the act of shouting. The Praetorian Edict circa 130 AD had made the act of cursive public pronouncement, through shouting, to be gravely punishable. The code had declared: "qui, advesus bonos mores convicium cui fecisse cuiusve opera factum esse dicitur, quo adversus bonos mores convicium Weret, in eum iudicium dabo." That is, shouting words and invectives contrary to public morals shall be punishable. [2]
Everyone has right to good reputation. Defamation is a false and unprivileged statement of fact that is harmful to someone's reputation or good name.
Defamation is of two kinds:
Slander – there is no permanency about slander because it is a spoken statement. It can also be a non verbal gesture or something similar. Example:
“B tells C that A is a fraud. Because of this C refuses to do business with A and