This is a very serious legal question on a Slander Suit my own father is bringing myself and mother into...?
My father is suing us for Slander, he has 5 people in this suit already. I have not been named yet but I will be in the next week or so because I am siding with everyone else and I will defend them. The so call Slander is because we are defaming his name by saying he molested me which he infact did when I was 11 twice. A police report was filed but he was charged with Lude and Lucivious behavior and I saw a psychologist. The charges were later dropped due to lack of evidence (this happened in 1999). I have the police report and I can track the psychologist down if I must. I know the best defense to Slander is the Truth and he did infact molest me and I have never had a relationship with him because of it. Ever since this has happened when I was 11 he has DENIED it. My father is a crooked man and is studying law (everyone calls him a professional student) and he is going pro-se in this ridiculous suit. All I can see is that this is my word against his...I mean I do have the police...
Answers:
The guy above isn't necessarily right.
For a criminal case you need to prove it beyond a reasonable doubt. For a civil case (slander) you only need to prove preponderance of the evidence.
That is how OJ Simpson was found innocent in his criminal case but liable in a civil case.
Since the court has not found him guilty he probably has a pretty strong case. Since you can not PROVE he molested you he only needs to prove that you and the other parties spread the word that he did.
Standing up to him and fighting him is the best thing you can do. The burden of proof is on him to prove slander.
Well it depends on how you said it ,to whom . And did he lose a job or bussines, because of this ? who is he bringing to court ? Any way I think most likey it will get thrown out ,
Slander is very hard to prove, but it also can go the wrong way if you did say things like that to people he works with ? and they are no longer his friends , and if he lost money from what you said ,, but In all I think You will be ok ,,
But you should keep things like that to your self and family, I feel for you , it should never happen to anyone ,But it does all the time , pray for him to get better and or help leave him alone in his life , he has to live with it , but you can forgive your self because you did nothing wrong ,,
So be honest in court , and have your witness . also ,,Just dont talk about it any more .. forget it ok.. you"ll be better off in life! God Bless
The standards for defamation (slander or libel) are set by state law, so you need to look up the laws for your state. This article gives some background on the elements of the defamation: http://www.abbottlaw.com/defamation.html...
You and your family should definitely consult a lawyer though.
If he is suing you for slander, What does child abuse have to do with it ?
I'm surprised your father would file this suit, since it brings attention to the matter which might otherwise be forgotten. Since you filed a police report and went to a psychologist, that is evidence that the accusations of molestation are true.
I'm not very fond of lawyers in general, but they do have their place in society, and sometimes they are needed and can be very helpful.
Check with a local legal aid society to see if you can get a lawyer to defend you pro bono. A lawyer might be able to write a strongly-worded letter that would cause your father to reconsider the lawsuit.
Another possible source of help would be RAIN, which stands for Rape and Incest Survivors Network. They might be able to put you in touch with a lawyer.
I hope your father is not in a position to harm other children. If he is, it would be your obligation to let responsible adults know what he did to you.
****Additional note: Please call the legal aid society.**** They are there to help people who may need a lawyer but cannot pay for one. A lot of lawyers do work "pro bono" which means for the public good, and they don't charge for the service. And a lot of lawyers will do a free consultation. I don't think you have much to worry about, but I'm not a lawyer.
Don't worry. I seriously doubt that your father will win. In all likelihood the judge will laugh him out of court. Especially if you have a crowd of people saying the statement is true. Just get all your witnesses together and show up in court if he names you in the suit or not, cause you will be the person the judge most wants to speak with.
SLANDER - A false defamation (expressed in spoken words, signs, or gestures) which injures the character or reputation of the person defamed; distinguished from libel.
The defaming a man in his reputation by speaking or writing words which affect his life, office, or trade, or which tend to his loss of preferment in marriage or service, or in his inheritance, or which occasion any other particular damage.
The key word in that definition is false. In a slander case its not up to you to prove your statement is true. Its up to him to prove its a lie. And prove your lie hurt him financially. As a Child Welfare worker I can name about 50 people who were found guilty of abuse and never criminally charged. He could have be offered a deal by the DA to plead guilty to a lessor charge. They often do that if there will be difficulty proving guilt, or to save the child from the trauma of testifying. So lack of charges is not proof of innocence. See if you can get the original transcripts from his lude bahavior charge.
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Answers:
The guy above isn't necessarily right.
For a criminal case you need to prove it beyond a reasonable doubt. For a civil case (slander) you only need to prove preponderance of the evidence.
That is how OJ Simpson was found innocent in his criminal case but liable in a civil case.
Since the court has not found him guilty he probably has a pretty strong case. Since you can not PROVE he molested you he only needs to prove that you and the other parties spread the word that he did.
Standing up to him and fighting him is the best thing you can do. The burden of proof is on him to prove slander.
Well it depends on how you said it ,to whom . And did he lose a job or bussines, because of this ? who is he bringing to court ? Any way I think most likey it will get thrown out ,
Slander is very hard to prove, but it also can go the wrong way if you did say things like that to people he works with ? and they are no longer his friends , and if he lost money from what you said ,, but In all I think You will be ok ,,
But you should keep things like that to your self and family, I feel for you , it should never happen to anyone ,But it does all the time , pray for him to get better and or help leave him alone in his life , he has to live with it , but you can forgive your self because you did nothing wrong ,,
So be honest in court , and have your witness . also ,,Just dont talk about it any more .. forget it ok.. you"ll be better off in life! God Bless
The standards for defamation (slander or libel) are set by state law, so you need to look up the laws for your state. This article gives some background on the elements of the defamation: http://www.abbottlaw.com/defamation.html...
You and your family should definitely consult a lawyer though.
If he is suing you for slander, What does child abuse have to do with it ?
I'm surprised your father would file this suit, since it brings attention to the matter which might otherwise be forgotten. Since you filed a police report and went to a psychologist, that is evidence that the accusations of molestation are true.
I'm not very fond of lawyers in general, but they do have their place in society, and sometimes they are needed and can be very helpful.
Check with a local legal aid society to see if you can get a lawyer to defend you pro bono. A lawyer might be able to write a strongly-worded letter that would cause your father to reconsider the lawsuit.
Another possible source of help would be RAIN, which stands for Rape and Incest Survivors Network. They might be able to put you in touch with a lawyer.
I hope your father is not in a position to harm other children. If he is, it would be your obligation to let responsible adults know what he did to you.
****Additional note: Please call the legal aid society.**** They are there to help people who may need a lawyer but cannot pay for one. A lot of lawyers do work "pro bono" which means for the public good, and they don't charge for the service. And a lot of lawyers will do a free consultation. I don't think you have much to worry about, but I'm not a lawyer.
Don't worry. I seriously doubt that your father will win. In all likelihood the judge will laugh him out of court. Especially if you have a crowd of people saying the statement is true. Just get all your witnesses together and show up in court if he names you in the suit or not, cause you will be the person the judge most wants to speak with.
SLANDER - A false defamation (expressed in spoken words, signs, or gestures) which injures the character or reputation of the person defamed; distinguished from libel.
The defaming a man in his reputation by speaking or writing words which affect his life, office, or trade, or which tend to his loss of preferment in marriage or service, or in his inheritance, or which occasion any other particular damage.
The key word in that definition is false. In a slander case its not up to you to prove your statement is true. Its up to him to prove its a lie. And prove your lie hurt him financially. As a Child Welfare worker I can name about 50 people who were found guilty of abuse and never criminally charged. He could have be offered a deal by the DA to plead guilty to a lessor charge. They often do that if there will be difficulty proving guilt, or to save the child from the trauma of testifying. So lack of charges is not proof of innocence. See if you can get the original transcripts from his lude bahavior charge.
The Answers post by the user, for information only, FreeLawAnswer does not guarantee the right.
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