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Friday, April 18, 2008
Courts - "When the Ex Blogs, the Dirtiest Laundry Is Aired"
Leslie Kaufman of the NY Times has this long story today. Some quotes on the legal aspects:
In separation, of course, one person’s truth can be another’s lie. Often the postings are furtive. But even when the ex-spouse is well aware that he or she is starring in a blog and sues to stop it, recent rulings in New York and Vermont have showed the courts reluctant to intervene. * * *In a decision only weeks ago, however, a justice of the Supreme Court of the State of New York said his complaints [a husband who sued arguing his ex-wife's podcast contained "statements that were 'obnoxious, derogatory or offensive' and that they violated the terms of the divorce settlement that she not 'harass' or 'malign' him"] were not grounds for blocking the podcast. While Laurie’s statements may be “ill-advised and do not promote co-parenting,” the court wrote, they were covered by the First Amendment.
Obviously, divorce lawyers are taking note. Deborah Lans of Cohen Lans, a Manhattan law firm with a thriving matrimonial practice, said, “The last thing you want to see is angry people making uncontrolled statements.”
Ms. Lans said her divorce agreements included a confidentiality provision that forbade either party to publish even fictionalized accounts of the marriage, but not every lawyer insists on that. The judge in Laurie’s case explicitly noted that her agreement did not have such a provision.
Earlier this year, a court in Vermont did tell William Krasnansky to take down his lightly disguised account of his divorce, in which he described his ex-wife in an unflattering light and blamed her for forcing him to sell their home at “a ruinous loss.” Mr. Krasnanksy’s ex-wife had complained that it was “defamatory.” But weeks later, after a firestorm of criticism, the court reversed itself and gave him the right to continue to publish.
Posted by Marcia Oddi on April 18, 2008 10:08 AM
Posted to Courts in general