Defamation in Texas
.jpg)
Defamation refers to uttering an untruthful statement about someone. "Libel" refers to written defamation. "Slander" refers to oral defamation. In the employment context, defamation has an extra hurdle. In Texas, to charge an employer with defamation, the defamation must be made in the course and scope of his/her employment. That is, the defamatory statement must be related to the speaker's job. So long as the speaker makes the statement to persons with a duty or need to know, then the speaker will be protected by a qualified privilege. For example, if a manager makes a statement to someone in Human Resources about an employee, even if that statement is not truthful, then the qualified privilege would probably apply.
An employee can overcome the qualified privilege only be showing the publisher of the statement acted with actual malice. Showing malice is a high burden. It can be very difficult to show malice, that a person knowingly and deliberately caused harm. Malice is more than mistake or misunderstanding. To show malice, an employee would have to show the speaker knew or should have known the statement was not true and that the speaker sought to cause harm of some sort. Many employees have come to me seeking redress for defamation. Rarely have I seen sufficient evidence to make a case of malice.
For example, an employer fires a person for alleged stealing. the employee did not steal. But, how do we show malice? That is, how do we show the employer knew or should have known the theft allegations were not true? Most times, we cannot.
Many of the normal principles of defamation law apply to the workplace: the statement must be clear and unambiguous. It cannot be capable of two different meanings, one of which might be non-defamatory. Truth is always an absolute defense to defamation.
Helpful article! Employment law blogs are extremely helpful to the public who aren't sure if they have a basis for a case
Thanks!