The University of Cincinnati Intellectual Property and Computer Law Journal Volume 5 Issue 1 Article 1 Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation in the Age of Online Speech: The Relevance of Anti-SLAPP and Anti- CyberSLAPP Legislation Lauren Merk Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.uc.edu/ipclj Part of the Communications Law Commons, Computer Law Commons, Constitutional Law Commons, and the First Amendment Commons Recommended Citation Lauren Merk, Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation in the Age of Online Speech: The Relevance of Anti-SLAPP and Anti-CyberSLAPP Legislation, 5 U. Cin. Intell. Prop. & Computer L.J. () Available at: https://scholarship.law.uc.edu/ipclj/vol5/iss1/1 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by University of Cincinnati College of Law Scholarship and Publications. It has been accepted for inclusion in The University of Cincinnati Intellectual Property and Computer Law Journal by an authorized editor of University of Cincinnati College of Law Scholarship and Publications. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. Merk: Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation in the Age of Onl Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation in the Age of Online Speech: The Relevance of Anti-SLAPP and Anti-CyberSLAPP Legislation I. INTRODUCTION Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (“SLAPPs”) are not a new phenomenon in American jurisprudence, yet these lawsuits have been the topic of recent commentary. The discussion surrounding SLAPPs may be a result of various states proposing new or amended anti-SLAPP laws— Virginia and New York, for instance, are a few of the latest legislatures to propose amended anti-SLAPP legislation.1 Or maybe, the rise of online speech and journalism have created new questions and concerns relating to SLAPPs.