Lansdowne v. Beacon Journal Pub. Co.

From Conservapedia

In Lansdowne v. Beacon Journal Pub. Co., 32 Ohio St.3d 176, 180, 512 N.E.2d 979, 984 (1987), the Ohio Supreme Court established its state requirements for proof of defamation:

[I]n our attempt to achieve the proper balance between the protection to private persons from injuries to reputation and to provide adequate "breathing space" for freedom of the press and freedom of speech, we modify the Embers standard and hold that in private-figure defamation actions, where a prima facie showing of defamation is made by a plaintiff, the plaintiff must prove by clear and convincing evidence that the defendant failed to act reasonably in attempting to discover the truth or falsity or defamatory character of the publication. "Clear and convincing evidence is that measure or degree of proof which is more than a mere 'preponderance of evidence,' but not to the extent of such certainty as is required 'beyond a reasonable doubt' in criminal cases, and which will produce in the mind of the trier of facts a firm belief or conviction as to the facts sought to be established." Cross v. Ledford (1954), 161 Ohio St. 469, 53 O.O. 361, 120 N.E. 2d 118, paragraph three of the syllabus. "* * * In a case presenting a configuration of speech and plaintiff like the one we face here, and where the scales are in such an uncertain balance, we believe that the Constitution requires us to tip them in favor of protecting true speech." Hepps, supra, at 793.

As a subsidiary issue, appellants contend that a heightened standard is required for proof of actual harm inflicted by defamatory falsehood. We do not find a great constitutional basis for this argument. Moreover, in Gertz, supra, the court stated at 350: "* * * Suffice it to say that actual injury is not limited to out-of-pocket loss. Indeed, the more customary types of actual harm inflicted by defamatory falsehood include impairment of reputation and standing in the community, personal humiliation, and mental anguish and suffering. Of course, juries must be limited by appropriate instructions, and all awards must be supported by competent evidence concerning the injury, although there need be no evidence which assigns an actual dollar value to the injury." (Emphasis added.) Thus, we do not believe that a heightened standard is required for proof of actual harm inflicted by defamatory falsehood.

Finally, appellants raise an issue concerning the scope of appellate review in private-figure cases. Appellants rely upon Bose Corp. v. Consumers Union of U.S., Inc. (1984), 466 U.S. 485, to assert that, in a case raising First Amendment issues, an appellate court must make an independent examination of the entire record in order to insure that the judgment of the trial court does not constitute a forbidden intrusion on the exercise of free expression. Indeed, this standard of review has traditionally been applied in cases where the trier of fact was required to make a finding of "actual malice." St. Amant v. Thompson (1968), 390 U.S. 737, 732-733; New York Times Co. v. Sullivan (1964), 376 U.S. 254, 284-286. See, also, Grau, supra, at 89, 31 OBR at 254, 509 N.E. 2d at 404. In Bose, supra, the court held at 510: "The requirement of independent appellate review reiterated in New York Times Co Click for Enhanced Coverage Linking Searches. v. Sullivan is a rule of federal constitutional law."

However, in cases such as the one at bar, where actual malice need not be proven, we decline to embrace the independent review requirement. "* * * The negligence standard for compensatory damages that we have adopted is not a matter of governing federal constitutional law; rather, within the parameters authorized by Gertz, we have fixed the standard as a matter of state law. Accordingly, Bose, as well as the federal decisions on which it is based, is not controlling on this issue." Gazette, Inc. v. Harris (1985), 229 Va. 1, 20, 325 S.E. 2d 713, 728, certiorari denied (1985), 472 U.S. 1032. Therefore, we will continue to adhere to our traditional standard of review in defamation actions involving private-figure plaintiffs.