Lawmakers are considering bills aimed at preventing frivolous lawsuits designed to silence political opponents.
They’re known as Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation. The idea is that someone with deep pockets files a lawsuit in Virginia specifically to harass someone with all the expense and hassle of going through the courts.
Senator Ghazala Hashmi of Richmond says she’s concerned Virginia has very few restrictions against these kinds of lawsuits.
“We have a long and rich tradition, especially in the United States, of maintaining satire as a critical part of our political commentary,” Hashmi explains.
Like Devin Nunes’ Cow, for example. The satirical Twitter account mocking a California Congressman is perhaps the most infamous example of a SLAPP lawsuit filed in Virginia.
Jennifer Nelson at the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press says these kinds of lawsuits have been filed for things people post on Facebook or Yelp.
“It results in attorney’s fees and stress and having to go to court and there are just a lot of considerations there that can happen just from your day-to-day expressing your viewpoint,” Nelson says.
She says the most important protections that should emerge from legislation are the ability of people to ask lawsuits be dismissed early in the process, before it gets expensive, and a requirement that people who file frivolous lawsuits pay all the legal bills of people they’re targeting.
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.
