Mark may be no lawyer, but he's correct that defamation simply isn't an issue here. To sue somebody for defamation (including libel or slander), you have to establish, usually, five things: 1. Some level of intent, depending on jurisdiction (usually negligence) to make 2. a statement to a third party 3. that is false and defamatory 4. about the plaintiff 5. which is either per se actionable (generally only includes a statement that somebody sleeps around, committed a crime, has a "loathsome" disease, or adversely reflecting on somebody's ability to do business) or gave rise to specific other damages. With problem dancers, elements 3 and 5 are missing, since the statements aren't provably false and in any case don't give rise to damages.
I think that yes, other area organizers should certainly be informed. There's no reason to let somebody who's a menace to the community simply go from dance to dance. It doesn't hurt anything to at least let other organizers know who the problem dancer is. Whether to ban somebody from a dance is a much different question. I think a good option is to simply approach the individual in question, and mention that there are certain community standards at your dance, and if he wants to dance there he must abide by those standards. That way it's his choice. One issue that came up in some communities discussing this question was whether or not it's appropriate to use somebody's name when discussing such problems. I'm personally a proponent of using the individual's name in email discussions, at dances, or in any other social context. I don't mean to try to publicly shame somebody, of course. However, I think using the person's name helps to create a sense in the community that these are problems with an individual, not general problems with the whole community, and that for the most part, the dance is a welcoming place. Any thoughts? -Dave -Dave On Tue, Nov 24, 2009 at 10:44 PM, Mark Hillegonds <[email protected]>wrote: > Hi all, > > I'm no lawyer, but it seems to me that slander and libel laws are in place > to address unsubstantiated or otherwise unprovable or untrue accusations. > It seems reasonable to me that if someone has caused such problems as to be > banned, that one could notify other communities about the ban. > > If an organization has bylaws or policies and procedures around this, they > might also be amended to contain situations in which other communities > might > be notified and what will be contained in the notification. Having the > procedure documented will help advise the leaders in any future situations. > > Mark Hillegonds > Phone: 734-747-7148 > Cell: 734-756-8441 > Email: [email protected] > > > -----Original Message----- > From: [email protected] > [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Chris Weiler > (home) > Sent: Tuesday, November 24, 2009 7:36 PM > To: A list for dance organizers > Subject: [Organizers] kickstart - problem dancers > > Hello everyone, > > It's time to kickstart this forum. It's too valuable a resource to let > sit unused. I'll start it off with a question that's been brought up in > a couple of communities that I'm involved in: > > When a dancer is causing problems through rough dancing and unwelcome > flirting, seems unable to change and has been banned from one dance > series, should other dance series in the region be informed? Should they > also ban the person from their dances? > > How do we communicate about this without violating slander and libel laws? > > thanks! > > Chris Weiler > Goffstown, NH > Board member for BIDA, CDS-Boston and the Scout House Monday Night Dance > Committee > > > _______________________________________________ > Organizers mailing list > [email protected] > http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/organizers > > _______________________________________________ > Organizers mailing list > [email protected] > http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/organizers > -- David Casserly Harvard Law School JD Class of 2011 [email protected] (cell) 781 258-2761
