Jared Leto's Lawyer Sends Ridiculously Bogus Cease & Desist, Calling Lots Of Attention To Statements About Him
from the how-not-to-do-things dept
You would think, by now, at least the big time lawyers would recognize that bogus defamation threats and demands for takedowns would only lead to more attention. And that should be especially true for Martin Singer, who proudly promotes the claim that he's a "pit bull" of a lawyer for a variety of Hollywood stars. Given his clientele, you'd think he and his firm, Lavely & Singer, would be especially careful about not making totally bogus threats that are actually likely to backfire and call extra attention to whatever it is they're trying to hide. But, apparently with all his Hollywood connections, Singer and his staff have not yet learned about the Streisand Effect.Paul Levy at Public Citizen alerts us to how a lawyer working for Lavely & singer, Allison Hart, has sent a ridiculous cease & desist notice to the website Lipstick Alley on behalf of actor/musician Jared Leto because some people in Lipstick Alley's forums made some comments about Leto in forums like this one and this one.
Almost everything in the threat letter is questionable or wrong -- beginning at the very top where it says "Confidential Legal Notice. Publication or Dissemination is Prohibited."
Having reviewed the posts that you have identified, I conclude that you do not have any non-frivolous defamation against any of the posters.There's a lot more in the letter (which is four pages long) that is well worth reading -- including his discussion of the "publication or dissemination is prohibited" line in the letter. And, of course, now this discussion about Leto from two years ago, which these lawyers were trying to hide, suddenly gets more attention.
Some of the posts of which you object do not appear to me to be defamatory. Two of the posts simply mention claims found elsewhere in the Internet that your client has a large penis. It is hard to see how those statements would hurt your client's reputation, even if they are false. It is, as I understand it, the accusation of having a small penis that is understood to be an insult.
Other posts about Leto's allegedly rough and inconsiderate behavior during alleged sexual encounters with fans, and about the age of one of the fans, might well have been defamatory when originally posted, assuming that they are false. I recognize that your letter claims that the statements are false. I assume that you do not have personal knowledge about the size of Leto's penis or about whether he is rough with sexual partners, and you do not cite any evidence supporting your claim of falsity. Moreover, the mere fact that a denial comes in a demand letter from a lawyer at Lavely & Singer means that it has no probative value, considering the number of times your firm has sent demand letters claiming that Bill Cosby did not mistreat his fans by using drugs to facilitate sexual conquests. If you have in mind to proceed on the claims about Leto, you will need to file a lawsuit (subject to California's anti-SLAPP statute, of course), and in support of a subpoena present an affidavit from Leto himself addressing the factual assertions in the posts. The affidavit will, no doubt, make for interesting reading.
Moreover, none of the posters on Lipstick Alley claims to have personal knowledge about Leto's conduct during sex with his fans (or about the size of his penis); some simply express their views about what they have read elsewhere, and some have reposted comments from other web sites that purport to reflect first-person descriptions of activities in which the original writers claim to have been involved. Your demand letter mentions that at least one of the linked-to posts has been deleted from the original site, and you seem to suggest that the removal of various posts in response to demand letters from your client supports your assertion that the posts are false. But at most, it only shows that the individuals whom your client threatened decided that the issue was not worth litigating. Lipstick Alley, however, stands up for the First Amendment right of its users to comment on celebrities, and to make those comments anonymously, unless their statements have been proved false and defamatory. It does not remove posts simply because a wealthy actor is able to hire a law firm to send threatening letters.
If I were Jared Leto, I might consider getting better lawyers.
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Filed Under: allison hart, cease and desist, defamation, jared leto, paul levy, section 230, statute of limitation, streisand effect, threats
Companies: lipstick alley
Reader Comments
The First Word
“Does Singer know about the Streisand Effect?
After I posted my piece, I had an interesting exchange with a reporter in Singer's home town (I leave the name out because I am not sure I have permission to use it) who said that when Singer was asked recently about the Streisand Effect, he said he knew about it and takes it into account when sending demand letters. Not clear, though, whether Singer goes over these risks with his clients, or whether other lawyers in his firm are similarly attentive.Subscribe: RSS
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Yet again, problem is simply lawyers, the cockroaches of civilization. They'll do anything for hire.
By the way, who is Jared Lota? You're publicizing him to people who otherwise didn't know even the name, so perhaps such publicity is the purpose of the letter: one theory is that all publicity is good.
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Yet again, problem is simply lawyers, the cockroaches of civilization. They'll do anything for hire.
By the way, who is Jared Lota? You're publicizing him to people who otherwise didn't know even the name, so perhaps such publicity is the purpose of the letter: one theory is that all publicity is good.
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Re: Yet again, problem is simply lawyers, the cockroaches of civilization. They'll do anything for hire.
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Re: Re: Yet again, problem is simply lawyers, the cockroaches of civilization. They'll do anything for hire.
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Re: Re: Re: Yet again, problem is simply lawyers, the cockroaches of civilization. They'll do anything for hire.
Other than that, who cares.
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Who is Jared Leto?
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Re: Yet again, problem is simply lawyers, the cockroaches of civilization. They'll do anything for hire.
_____________________
The problem is SOME lawyers and SOME clients. You don't hear about my clients because (i) I would not counsel them to undertake this sort of action and (ii) I would not pursue such an action anyway. I tell clients "no" all the time. That's the advice for which they're paying.
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Re: Re: Yet again, problem is simply lawyers, the cockroaches of civilization. They'll do anything for hire.
It is a pity that lawyers such as yourself (I assume you're a lawyer, apologies if not) don't file more complaints with the local bar association over ambulance chasers.
The profession is supposed to be self-policing, yet there appears to be precious little of that going on.
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Re: Yet again, problem is simply lawyers, the cockroaches of civilization. They'll do anything for hire.
OMG, you figured him out.
I'd call it 'making a living', jackass.
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Re: Yet again, problem is simply lawyers, the cockroaches of civilization. They'll do anything for hire.
Why would you leap to such an inane assumption? A lot of people with an interest in modern rock music and/or movies will recognize him. Your own ignorance doesn't undermine the article one bit.
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Re:
You really do not think anything through, do you, you little wankstain?
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Re: Yet again, problem is simply lawyers, the cockroaches of civilization. They'll do anything for hire.
Jealous much... again?
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Penis size
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Re: Penis size
(lol!)
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Greatest. Lawyers. Ever.
The bigger challenge is, frankly, giving them something to leverage. They say that your first million dollars are the hardest to earn; harder still (heh) is your first large penis rumor posted to an online gossip site. Once he has that, nearly any guy can sign-on Lavely to spread the rumor and thereby commence the Jared-Letoesque phase of his existence.
If only all high-priced firms accomplished as much for their clients.
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Re: Greatest. Lawyers. Ever.
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My Thoughts Exactly -
(b) All on-going discussion will mention that he has a big penis. Mission accomplished.
Jared pays his lawyers extra so they appear incompetent to his benefit.
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Re: My Thoughts Exactly -
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Statute of limitations
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Law firm? Really??
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Does Singer know about the Streisand Effect?
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Re: Does Singer know about the Streisand Effect?
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Re: Does Singer know about the Streisand Effect?
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If I were Jared Leto, I might consider getting better lawyers.
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Re: If I were Jared Leto, I might consider getting better lawyers.
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Re: Re: If I were Jared Leto, I might consider getting better lawyers.
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What's the difference...
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Made me actually Google "Jared Leto" to see who he was. Stopped reading after seeing "My So-Called Life".
Perhaps his lawyer is more shrewd than you give him credit for.
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Lawyers don't care ...
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Terrorized by Lavley & Singer Attorney
Let's not for get that Martin Dori Singer pledge his undying respect and loyalty to Anthony Pellicano! Buchanan and Mehringer are Singer's new Pellicano.
Listen for yourself: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/allison-hope-weiner/pellicano-trial-audio-exc_b_95949.html
Buchanan is from infamous Rampart scandal and Mehringer, who lost a job due to being profiled as an anti-Semitic. Per the LA Times, Buchanan is also stabbed someone and committed forgery.
http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/media/site200/2006/0711/20060711_054805_SCORECARD.pdf
http://ar ticles.latimes.com/keyword/michael-buchanan
http://articles.latimes.com/1996-02-04/news/mn-32283_1_ra cial-joke
http://articles.latimes.com/1996-02-06/local/me-32926_1_racial-joke
Even better, Buchanan continues to work as a "PI" even though he was on "Probation" and his "Private Investigator License No. PI 24849" and his "Firearm Permit No. FQ 255230" were pulled by the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services of the State of California on August, 7, 2012!
http://www.bsis.ca.gov/public/pi_24849_2013_04_25_dec.PDF
These men had me on the verge of suicide. I had to leave my country while Self, Buchanan and Mehringer roam the streets of Hollywood.
Henry, when you passed the bar did your mother say, "Go forth son, conspire with criminals, because like attracts like, and terrorize women to the brink of suicide? If so, they you must have one proud mama. Buchanan and Mehringer were born of jackals so they have no excuse.
Don't worry Henry, if I go, I will not be going quietly. Every video, license plate, image, witness testimony, police report and more will be released again and again. I'm okay to take one for the team with the hopes others harassed by your firm will then come forward. This is what happens when you take all hope from someone. I am now your creation, Henry.
You made my life a living hell... see you there.
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Allison
Tee hee
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the links
Here you go:
PDF P1/4 para1
http://www.lipstickalley.com/showthread.php/540892-Any-Jared-Leto-tea/page3
http://www.lipsticka lley.com/showthread.php/540892-Any-Jared-Leto-tea/page2
PDF P3/4 para4
http://media.sdreader.com/pdf/confidential-letter.pdf
http://pubcit.typepad.com/clpblog/2007/10/ dont-publish-th.html
http://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2009/jul/15/city-light-2/#
And the best summary of all of this:
https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20150806/07072931869/jared-letos-lawyer-sends-ridiculously-bo gus-cease-desist-calling-lots-attention-to-statements-about-him.shtml
E
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