DOCSLIB.ORG

SJBE Volume 3 [2011]

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
SJBE Volume 3 [2011] SJBE Southern Journal of Business and Ethics Volume 3, 2011 A publication of the Southern Academy of Legal Studies in Business (www.salsb.org) Volume 3, Southern Journal of Business and Ethics, 2011 SOUTHERN JOURNAL OF BUSINESS AND ETHICS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF M. P. (Marty) Ludlum Assistant Professor of Legal Studies College of Business University of Central Oklahoma WEB MASTER Joseph A. Zavaletta School of Business Boise State University SENIOR ADVISORY EDITOR William T. (Will) Mawer Dean, School of Education and Behavioral Sciences Southeastern Oklahoma State University ADVISORY EDITORS Darrell Ford Associate Professor of Legal Studies College of Business University of Central Oklahoma Raymond Teske College of Business University of Texas at San Antonio Dan Davidson College of Business Radford University The Southern Journal of Business and Ethics is an official publication of the Southern Academy of Legal Studies in Business ISSN: 1944-5474 Listed in: Cabell’s Directory, Ulrich’s Directory, and EBSCO Copyright to the contests of the articles published herein is retained by the respective authors. Copyright to the design, format, logo and other aspects of this publication is claimed by the Southern Academy of Legal Studies in Business. The views expressed herein are to be attributed to the authors and not to this publication, The Southern Academy of Legal Studies in Business, its officer, the editors, or any named college or university. The material appearing in this publication are for information purpose only and should not be considered legal advice or be used as such. For a specific legal opinion readers must confer with their own legal counsel. 1 Volume 3, Southern Journal of Business and Ethics, 2011 2 Volume 3, Southern Journal of Business and Ethics, 2011 From the Editor-in-Chief. This is the 3rd volume of the Southern Journal of Business and Ethics, an official publication of the Southern Academy of Legal Studies in Business. The Journal is being published in hardcopy and electronically on the Southern Academy’s web page at http://www.salsb.org. One important update for this year, SJBE has been included in Ebsco Host services, allowing for full text search on most university library systems! This provides a great benefit to our authors and readers! All articles that appear in this volume of the Southern Journal of Business and Ethics have been recommended for publication by the Advisory Editors, using a double, blind peer review process. A personal thanks is extended to the Advisory Editors for all their hard work and dedication to the Journal and the Southern Academy; without their work, the publication of this Journal would be impossible. This is my third year as Editor-in-Chief, and I wish to express my sincere thanks and appreciation to all the Officers of the Southern Academy for their support, encouragement, assistance and advice throughout this year. I would like to further express appreciation to Will Mawer of Southeastern Oklahoma State University, for his efforts in coordinating the entire process. The publishing of this journal is an intense educational experience which I continue to enjoy. Many of the papers herein were presented at the Southern Academy of Legal Studies in Business meeting in San Antonio, Texas, March, 2011. Congratulations to all our authors. I extend a hearty invitation to the 2012 meeting of the SALSB in San Antonio, Texas, March 8-9-10, 2012. The Southern Academy annual meeting has been voted the “BEST REGIONAL” among all the regions affiliated with the Academy of Legal Studies in Business (ALSB) featuring over 60 authors and 50 papers. I hope to see ya’ll in San Antonio! Please check the web site (www.salsb.org) for further information. To further the objectives of the Southern Academy, all comments, critiques, or criticisms would be greatly appreciated. Again, thanks to all the members of the Southern Academy for allowing me the opportunity to serve you as editor-in- chief of the Journal. M.P. (Marty) Ludlum Editor-in-Chief Southern Journal of Business and Ethics www.salsb.org 3 Volume 3, Southern Journal of Business and Ethics, 2011 4 VOLUME 3 (2011) SOUTHERN JOURNAL OF BUSINESS AND ETHICS Title Page . 1 Editorial Policy . 3 Table of Contents . 5 Managing Federal Estate Tax Liability with Texas Family Limited Partnerships David Ritter and John F. Shampton . 7 Severance v. Patterson: Does Enforcement of the Texas Open Beaches Act Constitute a “Taking” Alix Valenti . 19 Where Have All the Lawsuits Gone? The Curious Case of Section 109 of the Other Civil Rights Act Margaret Langford . 33 Fighting Futility II: More Tools for Mediation Success Charles Bultena, Charles Ramser, and Kristopher Tilker . 42 Implications of the Melendez-Diaz Supreme Court Decision Daphyne Saunders Thomas, David L. Parker, and Terry S. Kelly . 57 Glass Ceiling and Maternity Leave as Important Contributors to the Gender Wage Gap Maria Florencia Cabeza, Jennifer Barger Johnson, and Lee J. Tyner . 73 I’m in the Band, Now what do I do? An Analysis and Application of Business Law Principles to the Formation and Operation of a Band Raymond H.C. Teske III, Rodolpho Sandoval, and Larry A. Bruner . 87 Libel Tourism and International Forum Shopping: The United States says “No Sale” (The Speech Act of 2010). Mary Rau-Foster and Brad Reid . 107 New Process Steel, LP v. NLRB: Quorum Issues and their Impact on Federal Labor Code Enforcement Robert K. Robinson, Dave L. Nichols, Sam Cousley, and Frank B. Markham . 119 Towards a Better Understanding of the Surge of Interest in Business Ethics Instruction John L. Keifer and Mary Carter Keifer . 127 Ethical Behavior of Graduate Business Students: An Examination of the Effect of Age, Gender, GPA, and Work Experience Sanjay Gupta, Edward D. Walker II, and Nancy J. Swanson . 137 Bankruptcy Code Section 727(a)(3): When is a Debtor’s Record Keeping Sufficient to Merit a Bankruptcy Discharge? William T. Mawer, Andrew F. Emerson, and John Love . 153 Integrating Corporate Social Responsibility with a Risk Management Methodology: A Strategic Approach Lila L. Carden and Raphael O. Boyd . 167 Notes for authors . 172 Volume 3, Southern Journal of Business and Ethics, 2011 6 Volume 3, Southern Journal of Business and Ethics, 2011 7 Volume 3, Southern Journal of Business and Ethics, 2011 MANAGING FEDERAL ESTATE TAX LIABILITY WITH TEXAS FAMILY LIMITED PARTNERSHIPS * DAVID RITTER ** JOHN F. SHAMPTON INTRODUCTION Anyone may arrange his affairs so that his taxes shall be as low as possible; he is not bound to choose that pattern which best pays the treasury. There is not even a patriotic duty to increase one's taxes. Over and over again the Courts have said that there is nothing sinister in so arranging affairs as to keep taxes as low as possible. Everyone does it, rich and poor alike and all do right, for nobody owes any public duty to pay more than the law demands.1 The Family Limited Partnership in Texas has, for many years, been known as a useful estate planning tool. With the temporary expiration of the federal estate tax in 2010 (and the adoption of the Texas Business Organizations Code2), it might well have been speculated that the era of the FLP was over. Whether this attitude was correct or not, however, the return of the estate tax in the form of a two-year interim imposition leads us to re-examine the use of the FLP and conclude that it does, in fact, have a potentially useful role in reducing the net taxable value of an estate. This outcome is a product of basic valuation concepts applied from the field of financial economics, allowing the use of the FLP to reduce tax burdens as well as facilitate preservation and control of family businesses (the traditional strength of the FLP). In addition, the FLP can even provide a bonus in the form of a modicum of protection against claims unrelated to the FLP’s business. Financial theory calls for increased rates of return on investments that present higher levels of risk. This “risk premium” can be expressed in the form of higher dollar returns or, alternatively, as a lower value for the asset in question. Thus, even the IRS concedes that the valuation of assets placed in an FLP is negatively affected by the difficulty of transfer of such limited partnership interests (sometimes referred to as “liquidity risk”) and by the lack of control * DBA, Associate Professor of Accounting, Texas A&M University Central Texas, Killeen, Texas. ** PhD, Adjunct Professor of Finance and Economics, Texas A&M University Central Texas, Killeen, Texas. 1 Helvering v. Gregory, 69 F.2d 809, 810 (2d Cir. 1934) (Learned Hand, J.), aff'd 293 U.S. 465, 55 S.Ct. 266. 2 Wassdorf, Lorna and Carmen Flores, LLCS AND PARTNERSHIPS, THE VIEW FROM THE SECRETARY OF STATE’S OFFICE, (2010). 8 Volume 3, Southern Journal of Business and Ethics, 2011 resulting from the nature of that vehicle. Both of these features support discounting the value of 3 the assets in question for estate tax purposes – the only issue for the Service is by how much. LIMITED PARTNERSHIPS IN GENERAL. Although well known in Texas (and the several states that have recognized the FLP or its equivalent) under the specific name “Family” Limited Partnership, the word “family” cannot be found in the BOC or its predecessor, the Texas Revised Limited Partnership Act (RLPA).4 A Family Limited Partnership is, in fact, distinguished from an “ordinary” Limited Partnership only by its use and not by any detail of its formation or other legal characteristic. Historically, a partnership is a creature of the common law coming into existence upon the mutual agreement of two or more persons to act in concert to do business without any formality or even an express agreement.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • An End Run Around the First Amendment: „Libel Tourists‟ Take Aim Overseas
    An End Run Around the First Amendment: „Libel Tourists‟ Take Aim Overseas By Ryan Feeney 2008 Pulliam Kilgore Intern Bruce W. Sanford Bruce D. Brown Laurie A. Babinski BAKER & HOSTETLER LLP Washington, D.C. Counsel to the Society of Professional Journalists September 2008 In the throes of the American Civil Rights movement as Southern blacks flexed their political might against segregation, a city commissioner in Alabama sued the country‟s most prominent newspaper, The New York Times. L.B. Sullivan‟s libel suit sought to silence the implication of his critics that he was part of a racist Southern oligarchy responsible for the violent suppression of black protests in Montgomery. It failed, and an uniquely American brand of free speech was born. In deciding that landmark free-speech case, New York Times v. Sullivan, 1 the U.S. Supreme Court noted how libel suits such as Sullivan‟s threatened “the very existence of an American press virile enough to publish unpopular views on public affairs.” Throughout modern American history, linking a person to an unpopular group has often led to a rash of libel suits against the press. It happened with communism in the 1940s, organized crime in the 1970s, and homosexuality in the 1980s under the stigmatizing glare of the AIDS epidemic. Yet in the more than four decades since the New York Times decision, American libel plaintiffs have found it acutely difficult to muzzle the press. But these free speech protections apply only on American soil, which means they cannot be used against the latest wave of libel litigants who bring suits overseas – foreigners accused of terrorism ties.
    [Show full text]
  • The Problem of Trans-National Libel, 60 Am
    University of Miami Law School University of Miami School of Law Institutional Repository Articles Faculty and Deans 2012 The rP oblem of Trans-National Libel Lili Levi University of Miami School of Law, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.law.miami.edu/fac_articles Part of the Comparative and Foreign Law Commons, First Amendment Commons, and the Jurisdiction Commons Recommended Citation Lili Levi, The Problem of Trans-National Libel, 60 Am. J. Comp. L. 507 (2012). This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Faculty and Deans at University of Miami School of Law Institutional Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Articles by an authorized administrator of University of Miami School of Law Institutional Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. LILI LEVI* The Problem of Trans-National Libelt Forum shopping in trans-nationallibel cases-"libel tourism"- has a chilling effect on journalism, academic scholarship,and scien- tific criticism. The United States and Britain (the most popular venue for such cases) have recently attempted to address the issue legisla- tively. In 2010, the United States passed the SPEECH Act, which prohibits recognition and enforcement of libel judgments from juris- dictions applying law less speech-protective than the First Amendment. In Britain, consultation has closed and the Parliamen- tary Joint Committee has issued its report on a broad-ranginglibel reform bill proposed by the Government in March 2011. This Article questions the extent to which the SPEECH Act and the Draft Defama- tion Bill will accomplish their stated aims.
    [Show full text]
  • CONGRESSIONAL RECORD—HOUSE, Vol. 154, Pt. 16
    22810 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD—HOUSE, Vol. 154, Pt. 16 September 27, 2008 LOFGREN, as much time as she may constrained by the first amendment and thus It prohibits a federal or state court from en- need. may provide less protection to defamation forcing a defamation judgment entered in an- Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California. I defendants than our Constitution requires. other country for publication involving a matter would certainly like to commend Con- (5) While our Nation’s courts will generally enforce foreign judgments as a matter of of public concern, unless the court first deter- gressman RODRIGUEZ and Senator comity, comity does not require that courts mines that the judgment is consistent with the SCHUMER. This is a measure that I sup- enforce foreign judgments that are repug- free-speech clause of our Constitution’s First port. nant to our Nation’s fundamental constitu- Amendment. Mr. Speaker, I would just like to note tional values, in particular its strong protec- H.R. 6146 responds to the problem of what there is another measure that we have tion of the right to freedom of speech. is sometimes called ‘‘libel tourism.’’ This is the marked up in the Judiciary Committee (6) Our Nation’s courts should only enforce disturbing practice of suing authors for defa- that would broadly assist our Amer- foreign judgments as a matter of comity mation in foreign countries rather than in the ican soldiers and their families. I hope when such foreign judgments are consistent United States, so as to avoid the speech-pro- with the right to freedom of speech.
    [Show full text]
  • SPEECH: Preempting Privacy Tourism Stephen Bates
    Hastings Communications and Entertainment Law Journal Volume 33 | Number 3 Article 3 1-1-2011 More SPEECH: Preempting Privacy Tourism Stephen Bates Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.uchastings.edu/ hastings_comm_ent_law_journal Part of the Communications Law Commons, Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law Commons, and the Intellectual Property Law Commons Recommended Citation Stephen Bates, More SPEECH: Preempting Privacy Tourism, 33 Hastings Comm. & Ent. L.J. 379 (2011). Available at: https://repository.uchastings.edu/hastings_comm_ent_law_journal/vol33/iss3/3 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Journals at UC Hastings Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Hastings Communications and Entertainment Law Journal by an authorized editor of UC Hastings Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. More SPEECH: Preempting Privacy Tourism by * STEPHEN BATES I. Libel Tourism .................................................................................................................... 380 II. Breach of Privacy in Britain ............................................................................................. 388 III. Publication of Private Facts in the United States ........................................................... 395 IV. Counterarguments ............................................................................................................. 401 V. Conclusion .........................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Freedom of the Press 2009
    Freedom of the Press 2009 FURTHER DECLINES IN GLOBAL MEDIA INDEPENDENCE Selected data from Freedom House’s annual survey of press freedom Acknowledgments Freedom of the Press 2009 could not have been completed without the contributions of numerous Freedom House staff and consultants. The following section, entitled “The Survey Team,” contains a detailed list of writers without whose efforts this project would not have been possible. Karin Deutsch Karlekar, a senior researcher at Freedom House, served as managing editor of this year’s survey. Extensive research, editorial, and administrative assistance was provided by Denelle Burns, as well as by Sarah Cook, Tyler Roylance, Elizabeth Floyd, Joanna Perry, Joshua Siegel, Charles Liebling, and Aidan Gould. Overall guidance for the project was provided by Arch Puddington, director of research, and by Christopher Walker, director of studies. We are grateful for the insights provided by those who served on this year’s review team, including Freedom House staff members Arch Puddington, Christopher Walker, Karin Deutsch Karlekar, Sarah Cook, and Tyler Roylance. In addition, the ratings and narratives were reviewed by a number of Freedom House staff based in our overseas offices. This report also reflects the findings of the Freedom House study Freedom in the World 2009: The Annual Survey of Political Rights and Civil Liberties. Statistics on internet usage were taken from www.internetworldstats.com. This project was made possible by the contributions of the Asia Vision Foundation, F. M. Kirby, Free Voice, Freedom Forum, The Hurford Foundation, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Lilly Endowment Inc., The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, the National Endowment for Democracy, The Nicholas B.
    [Show full text]
  • Libel Tourism in the Context of Press Freedom
    DOI:10.1515/curie-2015-0027 ANNALES UNIVERSITATIS MARIAE CURIE-SKŁODOWSKA LUBLIN – POLONIA VOL. XXII, 1 SECTIO K 2015 Interdisciplinary Humanistic Doctoral Studies, Faculty of Philosophy and History, University of Łódź, Poland OLGA BOGDAŃSKA Libel tourism in the context of press freedom ABSTRACT The phrase ‘libel tourism’ appeared for the first time in 1990, when a Hollywood star Arnold Schwarzenegger sued American author Wendy Leigh for his unauthorized biography in an English court [Rayner 2010; Sanchez 2011]. A number of recent cases included wealthy libel tourists such as Nicole Kidman, David Hasselhoff, Roman Polański, Jennifer Lopez, Marc Anthony, Britney Spears, Tiger Woods and Cameron Diaz. Since 2005, the number of libel actions in the High Court has doubled, and in 2009, there were 219 defamation cases issued; 34 of them were identified as having a “foreign connection” [Ministry of Justice, Report of the Libel Working Group]. In a short time, the widespread opinion has appeared that London has become the “Libel Capital of the World” [London “The Times”, Be Reasonable; Carvajal, Britain, a Destination for ‘Libel Tourism’]. Through an extensive review of relevant case law and studies I would like to draw attention to the problem of libel tourism which creates a chilling effect on press freedom. Key words: chilling effect, defamation law, freedom of expression, libel tourism The definition of ‘libel tourism’ is complex to characterize, although the general view of this approach is that the term is used to describe a phenomenon of filing a lawsuit in libel cases by the suing party away from his/her place of residence due to a better chance of getting a good result [Staveley-O’Carroll 2009; Sanchez 2011].
    [Show full text]
  • International Publications and Protection of Reputation: a Margin of Appreciation but Not Subservience?
    File: PARTLETT MCDONALD EIC PUBLISH FINAL.docCreated on: 4/18/2011 1:08:00 PM Last Printed: 4/19/2011 1:48:00 PM ALABAMA LAW REVIEW Volume 62 2011 Number 3 INTERNATIONAL PUBLICATIONS AND PROTECTION OF REPUTATION: A MARGIN OF APPRECIATION BUT NOT SUBSERVIENCE? David Partlett* Barbara McDonald** “We are not so provincial as to say that every solution of a prob- lem is wrong because we deal with it otherwise at home.” - Cardozo, J., in Loucks v. Standard Oil Co. of New York INTRODUCTION ................................................................... 478 I. SEPARATED BY OUR COMMON LANGUAGE................................ 480 A. Notorious Libel Tourists ................................................ 487 B. Who is Truly a Tourist? ................................................. 489 II. RECOGNITION AND ENFORCEMENT OF FOREIGN JUDGMENTS ......... 492 A. Australian and English Rules .......................................... 492 B. The Role of Public Policy in International Litigation .............. 493 C. Enforcement of English Libel Judgments in United States Courts 496 1. Case Law ............................................................. 496 2. Statutes ............................................................... 499 D. The Contrast Between English and United States Libel Law ...... 502 III. THE LAW AS AN EXPRESSIVE MEDIUM .................................. 504 A. A Polyphonic World ..................................................... 506 CONCLUSION ...................................................................... 510 * Dean
    [Show full text]
  • Libel Tourism's Final Boarding Call
    ELLEN FORMATTED 1/19/2010 3:39 PM LIBEL TOURISM’S FINAL BOARDING CALL Ellen Bernstein* INTRODUCTION ......................................................................... 205 I. BACKGROUND ........................................................................ 209 II. ANALYSIS ............................................................................. 215 A. American Libel Law................................................. 216 B. British Libel Law ..................................................... 219 C. Dangers of Libel Tourism ........................................ 222 D. Legislative Solutions, and Support and Opposition Thereto .................................................. 223 CONCLUSION ............................................................................ 226 INTRODUCTION Imagine that you are a popular, United States-based entertainer who enjoys an international reputation. Imagine further that, on a trip to the grocery store, you discover that you and your spouse – also a well-known entertainer– are on the cover of a tabloid newspaper that links you to a drug scandal.1 You decide to sue the tabloid for damages, a retraction, and a public apology.2 You are aware, however, that American law places a heavy burden on celebrity plaintiffs in libel actions.3 Luckily for you, the story also appeared in the publication‟s international editions.4 With the assistance of an attorney based in Northern Ireland, you sue * J.D. Candidate, 2010, Seton Hall University School of Law; B.A., 2005, George Washington University. I would like to thank Professor David Opderbeck for his guidance during the writing of this Comment. I would also like to thank my family for their support and encouragement. 1. See Jennifer Lopez, Marc Anthony Suing National Enquirer, FOXNEWS.COM, Apr. 16, 2007, http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,266408,00.html [hereinafter Jennifer Lopez]. 2. Id. 3. See ROBERT D. SACK, SACK ON DEFAMATION § 2.1.1 (3d ed. 2007); Michael M. Rosen, Ah, the Adventures of Libel Tourism, POLITICO.COM, Aug.
    [Show full text]
  • The Centre for Law, Justice and Journalism
    The Centre for Law, Justice and Journalism The Centre for Law, Justice and Journalism is the first major interdisciplinary centre in the UK to develop a broad, yet focused, interface between law, justice and journalism in society. The centre aims to harness and maximise opportunities for research collaboration, knowledge transfer and teaching to become an international centre of excellence and brings together expertise in the disciplines of Law, Criminology and Journalism at City University London. CLJJ Working Papers Reframing Libel is the fir st set of working papers in a series from the Centre for Law Justice and Journalism at City University London. The papers on Reframing Libel contain articles by leading lawyers, academics and journalists in the field who presented at the symposium organised by the Centre in November 2010 at City University. The papers are edited by Connie St Louis who was instrumental in organizing the symposium. Leadership and Expertise The Centre for Law, Justice and Journalism (CLJJ) is directed by three of City University London’s leading academics, as well as being supported by a number of specialists from the university. Professor Professor Professor Howard Tumber, Lorna Woods, Eugene McLaughlin, CLJJ Director CLJJ Director CLJJ Director (Journalism) (Law) (Justice) Howard Tumber, Professor Associate Dean of Eugene McLaughlin, of Journalism and Research at The City Law Professor of Criminology at Communication within School, City University the School of Social the Graduate School of London, Lorna Woods has Sciences, City University Journalism, City University research interests in London, has written London, has published broadcasting law and extensively on policing, widely in the field of the policy, regulation of the criminal justice and public sociology of news and media and the related policy and criminological journalism.
    [Show full text]
  • Blood Libel: Radical Islam's Conscription of the Law of Defamation Into a Legal Jihad Against the West - and How to Stop It R
    FIRST AMENDMENT LAW REVIEW Volume 8 | Issue 2 Article 5 3-1-2010 Blood Libel: Radical Islam's Conscription of the Law of Defamation into a Legal Jihad against the West - and How to Stop It R. Ashby Pate Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarship.law.unc.edu/falr Part of the First Amendment Commons Recommended Citation R. A. Pate, Blood Libel: Radical Islam's Conscription of the Law of Defamation into a Legal Jihad against the West - and How to Stop It, 8 First Amend. L. Rev. 414 (2018). Available at: http://scholarship.law.unc.edu/falr/vol8/iss2/5 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Carolina Law Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in First Amendment Law Review by an authorized editor of Carolina Law Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. BLOOD LIBEL: RADICAL ISLAM'S CONSCRIPTION OF THE LAW OF DEFAMATION INTO A LEGAL JIHAD AGAINST THE WEST - AND HOW TO STOP IT R. ASHBY PATE* ABSTRACT On May 19, 2009, a panel of distinguished legal professionals assembled in Washington, D.C., at a conference, entitled Libel Lawfare: Silencing Criticism of Radical Islam, to discuss radical Islam's exploitation of Western libel laws to silence authors and journalists who seek to expose terror-financing networks and who criticize radical Islam. The discussion embodied a cresting wave of public concern about the surprising ways Western laws enable this assault. This Article seeks to call attention to two critical mistakes perpetuated by panelists at the conference and consistently present in current libel lawfare scholarship.
    [Show full text]
  • Libel Tourism
    Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs המרכז הירושלמי לענייני ציבור ומדינה )ע"ר( Libel Tourism: International Forum Shopping for Defamation Claims Avi Bell1 » 1 © 2008 Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs 13 Tel Hai Street, Jerusalem, Israel Tel. 972-2-561-9281 Fax. 972-2-561-9112 Email: [email protected] www.jcpa.org | www.globallawforum.org ISBN 978-965-218-070-4 Production Manager: Edna Weinstock-Gabay Graphic Design: www.ramijaki.co.il - Rami & Jacky / Orit Meidan » 2 Introduction Libel tourists are claimants who, aggrieved by a publication that hurts their reputation, sue in a court outside their home country in order to increase the likelihood that they will win the case. Libel tourists are also referred to as defamation shoppers. This title emphasizes the shopper’s practice of searching for the best deal - in this case for the international jurisdiction friendliest to plaintiffs bringing libel or defamation claims. Libel tourism has reached the headlines recently due to an increase in the number of persons around the world who have discovered the advantages of bringing libel actions in England and other pro-plaintiff jurisdictions, notwithstanding the lack of substantial connection of either plaintiff or defendant with the country in which the suit is brought. England has become a magnet for such claims both because it welcomes cases with a thin English connection and because its libel law strongly favors the plaintiff, particularly in placing on the defendant speaker the burden of proving the truth of the challenged statement. Libel tourism threatens to internationalize the law of libel, subjecting every writer around the globe to the restrictions of the most pro-plaintiff libel standards available.
    [Show full text]
  • Why the Speech Act Is Mostly Bark, with Little Bite
    Hofstra Law Review Volume 40 Article 13 Issue 1 FORTIETH ANNIVERSARY VOLUME 2011 Nearly Toothless: Why the Speech Act is Mostly Bark, with Little itB e Elizabeth J. Elias Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarlycommons.law.hofstra.edu/hlr Part of the Law Commons Recommended Citation Elias, Elizabeth J. (2011) "Nearly Toothless: Why the Speech Act is Mostly Bark, with Little itB e," Hofstra Law Review: Vol. 40: Iss. 1, Article 13. Available at: http://scholarlycommons.law.hofstra.edu/hlr/vol40/iss1/13 This document is brought to you for free and open access by Scholarly Commons at Hofstra Law. It has been accepted for inclusion in Hofstra Law Review by an authorized administrator of Scholarly Commons at Hofstra Law. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Elias: Nearly Toothless: Why the Speech Act is Mostly Bark, with Little NOTE NEARLY TOOTHLESS: WHY THE SPEECH ACT IS MOSTLY BARK, WITH LITTLE BITE I. INTRODUCTION In 1990, after his first appearance as the title character in The Tenninator,' and before his stint as the thirty-eighth Governor of California,2 Arnold Schwarzenegger found himself trying to squelch a public relations nightmare.3 Two years earlier, celebrity journalist Wendy Leigh supplied information to a writer of a front-page story in Rupert Murdoch's News of the World, which claimed that Schwarzenegger was a Hitler admirer who held "fervent Nazi and anti- Semitic views."4 By 1990, Leigh was on the verge of publishing an unauthorized biography filled with allegations of Schwarzenegger's past homosexual experiences, use and sale of steroids, and criminal history.
    [Show full text]