Speech Act

Legal Update by Mike Oliver

The SPEECH Act was signed into law in August 2010.  This Act is designed to make it much more difficult for plaintiffs who sue for defamation in foreign courts (typically in the UK) to enforce their defamation judgments in the United States. 

The law, which can be viewed here simply provides that any foreign court judgment for defamation may not be enforced in the United States or in any State, unless the claim would also have constituted defamation under applicable U.S. law, including both the law of the state in which it is sought to be enforced, and under the US Constitution's 1st Amendment principles.

This law was amended at the last minute to extend this protection also to "Section 230" claims – Section 230 is a statutory provision that gives tremendous protection to interactive computer services that host allegedly defamatory content.  Thus, if an interactive computer service is sued in a  foreign country, and such suit would not be cognizable in the United States under Section 230, the judgment cannot be enforced in the United States.  

In addition, if a suit to enforce is brought in the United States and fails, the defendant is entitled to attorneys fees.  Of interesting note, the reverse is not true – in other words – if the plaintiff successfully registers the foreign defamation judgment, it is not entitled to its attorneys' fees to defend a claim that such defamation judgment did not meet US law requirements.

Mr. Oliver concentrates his practice in transactional intellectual property matters, primarily in acquisition, protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights in computer and internet technology including domain names, trademark prosecution including opposition, cancellation and interference proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, copyright acquisition and enforcement, and advertising law including Lanham Act cases (false and misleading advertising, dilution, tarnishment). Mr. Oliver also has extensive experience in licensing of computer software, and licensing and ownership resolution of digital information on the internet. Mr. Oliver can be reached at oliver@bowie-jensen.com