Techdirt Is Fighting A New Lawsuit
from the slapp-suits dept
Techdirt was recently sued in Florida by Larry Klayman for an article that we published concerning the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit suspending his license for 90 days. We strongly believe that this case is entirely without merit, and is a clear attempt to silence opinion and criticism via the court system.
Last week, we asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit under Florida’s anti-SLAPP law, and we hope that the court will agree. Beyond that, while litigation is still ongoing, we'll have no further comment, other than to note our continued advocacy for the adoption of more state anti-SLAPP laws and a strong federal anti-SLAPP law.
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Reader Comments
The First Word
“It is a chrome browser and embed documentcloud problem: old mac desktop, latest android mobile w'latest Chrome Browser have that blank box.
I used mobile Firefox set desktop site on android mobile. The PDF is downloaded to read later. I also set search to Duck Duck Go. YMWV
Stupid Chrome browser keeps shooting itself in the foot.
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DC Appeals Court Affirms Sidelining Of Attorney Larry Klayman, Who Attempted To 'Change Sides' In Litigation
Is that the article in question?
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Judicial Watch or Judicial Wacko...you be the judge.
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Re:
Yes - it is referenced in the introduction of the filing (page 2)
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Sorry you have to deal with this
It is clearly a distraction and a drain on resources. I hope this gets sorted out soon. I have always been impressed that you highlight people like this when they clearly communicate what they are capable of doing.
https://newbeautifulera.wordpress.com/2013/03/30/how-nature-says-do-not-touch-a-classic-far-s ide-comic/
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And thus Klayman only underscores his complete lack of integrity or legal acumen.
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I can’t read the lawsuit. I just see a blank box.
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Re:
Tomayto, tomahto.
Remember they're the group that pushed a sham lawsuit over NOAA scientists' emails, backed only by a fake story from a British tabloid.
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Re:
I had the same problem. However, after closing and re-launching the browser everything worked fine.
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Re:
Perhaps that's a commentary on the amount of substance the lawsuit has.
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Re:
I could read the lawsuit, but after leaving and returning to this page I can't. Seems like an intermittent issue (the most fun to diagnose). Reloading might be enough to solve the problem.
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Ah one of the classics, 'Telling people what I did makes me look bad, therefore it counts as defamation!'
Hopefully the courts will see this for the blatant SLAPP suit that it is and benchslap it right out the door along with an order for him to pay your legal fees for having to deal with such an obvious attempt to punish you for reminding people what a terrible lawyer he is.
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Let me guess, Thiel is funding him? Or maybe the guy who didn't invent email?
Sorry you have to deal with shit like this from overly sensitive twats. Let's hope he loses his license, he seems to be on the way.
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Re:
I've got the same thing (I'm not restarting my browser right now), but amusingly, I can read the PDF on the main techdirt page; just not on the link of the actual article this is in.
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pouts
I'm losing my touch... they never include me in exhibits anymore.
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I disagree with some articles here on techdirt, and I had my fair share of flagged comments - but I respect your work, love to challenge your ideas (even if sometimes I am wrong, and I did learn many things from your articles and the community comments). It is always sad to see the misuse of law to silence journalism and stifle discussions on complex themes such as the ones you write about. Best of luck with your defense, and don't let this diminish your enthusiasm. Unfortunately the world is full of cowards that hide behind a lawyer because they have nothing to say by themselves.
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Original Lawsuit
Is there a link to the original law suit against TD anywhere?
After reading the above motion, I am curious and would like to read the original complaint.
Also, you should at least do a post explaining the pros and cons of Florida's anti-SLAPP law.
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Never start a fight
when you have feet made of Klay.
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I think we found John Smith, you guys.
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Re:
As the late Ed Brayton would so often put it, Larry Klayman is the dumbest lawyer in America not named Mat Staver.
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Chrome Browser and me
Since Chrome Browser is checking for latest service. In this case if documentcloud enbed has an error there is only a layout box with nothing .
The error :
"Uncaught SyntaxError: in …embed. documentcloud. org/bundle. js: source -- bundle.js:2
Why did I look? Just wondering.
Documentcloud . org Maybe?
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Re: Re:
i... did not even know he had died. wow.
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Re:
It is a chrome browser and embed documentcloud problem: old mac desktop, latest android mobile w'latest Chrome Browser have that blank box.
I used mobile Firefox set desktop site on android mobile. The PDF is downloaded to read later. I also set search to Duck Duck Go. YMWV
Stupid Chrome browser keeps shooting itself in the foot.
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I'm not surprised...
...because actually publishing public information is inconvenient to oh so many people.
Now that Klayman has shat in the water I'm sure we'll see Baghdad Bob around in a frenzy, thinking he smelled blood. Time to batten down the hatches because albeit the lawsuit may be a minor nuisance the zealous copyright cult/racist crusader will be spamming these pages in religious hysteria.
Mike, Tim, Karl; My hat is off to you all for the work you do. May your lawyers move smoothly on this one.
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Re: I'm not surprised...
Klayman proves it's not only Jhon Smith/Chozen/Bobfail/Ayyadurai that has absolutely no clue what defamation is.
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Pick on someone who f can fight
Hey: Larry Klayman
I consider you a piece of shite.
Want to come after me for it? Feel free. I don’t hide and I’m not hard to find with over 30 years of digital presence.
The MPAA lost, the RIAA lost, Fact lost, Ace lost, Sony lost, Intel lost.
I’m sure your staff knows where to find me.
Take on someone who will counter sue for once. I’d love the opportunity to take every last penny you have.
Sincerely—
Waiting. Fuck Tard.
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Re: Pick on someone who f can fight
Ps: don’t take too long. New Apple computers are due 4th quarter.
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Re: Re:
I’m on Safari on mobile. It’s not just Chrome.
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Re:
I was watching some videos about Flight 77 the other day. And lo and behold all of a sudden Tom Fitton was on my screen. Was he pushing some bullshit conspiracy theory? Not at all. He was appearing on a mainstream media source (wearing a suit instead of his current size medium polo to show off his creatine/steroid filled arms, in front of a Judicial Watch logo) to unequivocally state that the government's account of the plane striking the Pentagon was accurate and the CCTV footage proved that.
https://youtu.be/0SL2PzzOiF8
Like the Republican party as a whole, at one point in time Judicial Watch apparently was an organization who had a modicum of credibility. But Obama and Hillary broke their brains and now this is what they've been reduced to.
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Nothing to say which hasn't been said
I just want to wish you folks at Techdirt good luck, and the fact that your enemies are this pathetic but still a nuisance is both a blessing and a curse. It really says something about your righteousness in this situation when even some of the commenters who have been flagged for abuse and spam wish you good luck along with those who have received insightful and funny votes; it just shows how you are morally in the right here.
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Re: Re: Re:
Goood[sic] 'ol Safari that did what I told it to do without a fat javascript mess of a library. Well, thanks to bundleDOTjs part of embed it dies at fetching the PDF - SINtax error.
List:
Chrome on osx 10.6.8 = nothing displayed.
Chrome on Android 11 ditto
Safari on [your config] = ditto
Firefox on Android 11 set browser to desktop mode = Embed looks ok. DOWN LOAD works.
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How the hell do people find ways to get this stuff into court in the first place?!!?
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Re:
Anyone can (and will) sue for anything.
Once upon a time lawyers were the first layer of defense, they would get a consultation fee to explain why you can't sue god b/c the bird shit on your car.
Nowdays they will file against god & google (because why the fsck not) over the bird shitting on your car... they get paid if you win or lose & if you're willing to pony up the cash they will appeal it until you are broke.
IMHO this lawyer has cut out the middle man of needing a client, and files pointless suits to try and punish those he dislikes & to fundraise from rubes.
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Re:
Have another guess, but first a clue: the signature block says
Respectfully Submitted,
/s/ Larry Klayman__
Larry Klayman, Esq.
Florida Bar. No. 246220
7050 W. Palmetto Park Rd
Boca Ratob FL 33433
This may be reflective of the unwillingness of other attorneys in his county to touch this dumpster fire of a claim.
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Re: Original Lawsuit
I downloaded a copy from the PB Clerk of Court.
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Re: Re: I'm not surprised...
It's, as usual, just a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation - they all know damn well it isn't defamation but dropping a lawsuit in front of a judge and demanding closed proceedings is that one go-to of people who aren't eager to have the malice they've outed in public discussed in public.
John Oliver's old episodes around Bob Murray and SLAPP provide one of the best descriptions around SLAPP and what it's used for.
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Re:
"How the hell do people find ways to get this stuff into court in the first place?!!?"
Short answer; US Tort Law.
In the US it's ridiculously easy to launch a lawsuit - you actually don't even need a reason. As long as you can foot the lawyer bills you can launch the suit, demand a judge takes a look at it, and possibly get a nondisclosure smacked on all parties to prevent public dissemination of what the suit is about and the details. This last part is what a SLAPP is all about - shutting a critic with a platform up.
How it works is roughly like this; The plaintiff starts the process and pays their lawyers. The defendant is either forced to retain a lawyer or spend a great deal of effort to process his defense. If he fails to do so the plaintiff wins on walkover and the defendant fleeced for whatever amount the plaintiff demanded.
During the preparatory process of the suit the judge puts down an injunction, preventing either party from discussing the proceedings in public.
By the time the case is set to hit the actual court the plaintiff usually drops the lawsuit without further ado.
It's basically a way to invest money in lawyers to shut a critic up and force them to pay for lawyers. If you're wealthier than said critic this usually works out in your favor. Practically speaking, this is essentially slipping Lady Justice a few bucks so she'll obstruct someone whose major "crime" is to speak inconvenient facts about, or satirize about the wealthy.
Trump has used this process, called SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation) extensively for most of his career but it's more or less the default option of every shady US entity, corporate or individual. Like Bob Murray or Nunes.
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Re: Re: I'm not surprised...
In defense of Jhon Smith + aliases, they aren’t a lawyer, nor did they explicitly say something that basically proves that it’s not defamation.
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