The New York Court of Appeals has passed up a chance to protect American authors from the libel judgments of foreign courts. Harvey Silverglate says that the court “could have done a better job of protecting our constitutional rights.”
Libel law in Britain, far more plaintiff-friendly than U.S. libel law, has spawned what has come to be known as “libel tourism,” a practice by which American writers have been sued by non-British nationals in British courts over works published in the U.S.
The case in question here involved Rachel Ehrenfeld, who had asked the court to declare the British ruling against her unenforceable under the First Amendment.
At issue was Ehrenfeld’s important book, Funding Evil: How Terrorism Is Financed — and How to Stop It, in which she accuses a Saudi billionaire of backing organizations with alleged ties to terrorism. He brought suit against Ms. Ehrenfeld and other researchers who have made similar allegations against him in court in London. (The New York Sun)