MC 4163 — SECOND EXAM STUDY GUIDE:

LIBEL: Fault

• Public official:
  • The correct legal definition. How have the U.S. Supreme Court and Oklahoma Supreme Court defined public official?
  • Understand the criteria that help determine if the government employee is a public official for the purposes of a libel lawsuit.
  • Is every government employee considered a public official for the purposes of a libel lawsuit?
  • Are all elected officials considered a public official for the purposes of a libel lawsuit?
  • Examples of public officials (and the courts' reasoning) discussed in class and in the readings, including:
    • Volunteer wrestling coach

    • Tag agent

    • School board member

    • Police

  • Can the particular controversy at issue turn the plaintiff into a public official? In other words, is the plaintiff status based on the person's job before the controversy erupted?
  • Must the alleged libel relate to the plaintiff's official conduct or conduct relevant to fitness for office? What conduct is considered relevant to fitness for office? What rule of thumb seems to apply?

• All-purpose Public Figure
  • The correct legal definition. Gertz v. Welch (1974)

  • What two criteria do courts seem to focus on to determine all-purpose public figures?
  • Must the person be an all-purpose public figure on a national level? Could the person just be famous locally?
  • Examples, and the courts' reasoning, discussed in class and in the readings.
  
   
  
• Limited-Purpose Public Figure
  • The correct legal definition. Gertz v. Welch (1974)

  • Examples, and the courts' reasoning, discussed in class and in the readings, including:
    • Author of a letter-to-the-editor

    • Candidates for political office

  • Does the label "limited-purpose public figure" apply to the plaintiff's entire life?
  • What three criteria help determine if someone is a limited-purpose public figure? (These come from the definition.)
  • Is public controversy the same as public interest or concern? What is the definition of public controversy?
  • Is voluntarily becoming involved in something that results in a public controversy the same as voluntarily becoming involved in what is already a public controversy?
  • Would going to court seeking a divorce make a person a public figure?
  • Would simply taking public money to do research make a person a public figure?
  • Would defending yourself against a criminal charge make a person a public figure?
  • What role does the plaintiff's access to the media play in determining plaintiff status?
  • Can the news media create a public controversy through its reporting and subsequently argue the plaintiff is a limited-purpose public figure because of the controversy? In other words, must the limited-purpose status predate the false reporting?
  • Must the alleged libel relate to that controversy? What does that mean?
  
   
  
• Under what circumstances could a business be considered a limited-purpose public figure? What are the criteria often used to determine if a business is a public figure?
   
  
• Once the person has achieved public figure status, does the status remain so regardless of the time that passes? What does it depend upon?

• Private figure:
  • Why is a private figure more deserving of recovery?

• Why is the plaintiff category important?