Diane Follin-Arbelet
CHAPTER 5
LIBEL: PROOF OF FAULT
NEW YORK TIMES VS SULLIVAN
– The Case:
o Advertisement placed by an ad hoc coalition of civil rights leaders called the
“Committee to Defend MLK and the Struggle for Freedom in the South”.
▪ Ad leveled charges against public officials in the South who, the
committee contended had used violence and illegal tactics.
• To quell the peaceful civil rights struggle.
– 1st case to go to trial was the one brought by Montgomery Alabama, police
commissioner L.B. Sullivan who sought $500,000 in damages for false and defamatory
statements about conduct of Montgomery Police Dept.
– His name was not mentioned, but he contended that comments about behavior of
Montgomery police reflected on him.
– Trial court ruled on behalf of Sullivan and awarded him $500,000 in damages, and
Alabama State Supreme Court upheld decision and damages.
o The US Supreme Court overturned decision and created the standard of actual
malice for public officials in libel cases.
– Rationale for the Ruling:
