On October 13, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press filed an amicus brief that the Alliance signed onto in the Second Circuit in Coleman v. Grand. The defendant wrote a letter to 40 of her friends and colleagues in the early days of the #MeToo movement saying she felt pressured by the plaintiff to have a physical relationship so he would teach her about music. In the letter she said she wanted to share her personal “experience” with “sexism in the music industry” in order to prompt “a larger conversation about what’s acceptable and what’s not.” Coleman sued Grand for defamation. Before the district court hearing, New York expanded its anti-SLAPP statute, and the district court ruled that the law applies retroactively. The plaintiff appealed, arguing the law is inapplicable, and the Reporters Committee filed an amicus brief arguing that New York’s anti-SLAPP law does apply in federal court. The Alliance signed onto the brief and continues to monitor cases concerning anti-SLAPP laws. Read more here.
Members of the News/Media Alliance staff have contributed to this post.
