Libel Lawsuits and Real Estate Bloggers
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Before I started Real Estate Blogging I had a political weblog. The battles there were epic compared to those on the real estate side as Conservatives and Liberals fought for the hearts and minds of the nations public. There were bitter accusations and equally nasty responses.
But real estate bloggers have a different worry. We deal in peoples most valuable asset, write about Fortune 500 companies, and call out the worst in our industry. I have gotten phone calls and emails from people angry about what I have written asking me to take it down. I never have because I follow one simple rule.
I write from an opinion perspective and stay close to the truth.
I also avoid taking personal shots that are not warranted. So if someone is arrested for mortgage fraud, I will write about that. If I hear a rumor that someone is going down, I typically hold on to it. It is not worth the scoop if I am wrong and hurt someones business.
David Myers has written a good story in the Daily Herald about how Real Estate Bloggers can protect themselves from libel lawsuits. Here is an excerpt but it is worth a Saturday morning read if you blog and this is a concern for you.
Q. I operate a blog on the Internet that focuses on local real estate issues. One man who recently lost his home to foreclosure wrote a profane message that appeared on my blog, claiming that the bank did several unscrupulous things to “force” him into foreclosure so it could sell the property itself for a big profit. The bank’s lawyers have now sent me a certified letter saying that the man’s statements were false and libelous and that the lender intends to sue me for defaming its character. There’s no way that I can afford to defend myself in a big lawsuit. What can I do?
A. You probably don’t have to worry much, especially if the writer’s rants were limited to only one or two statements and you made no defamatory comments yourself. But your situation provides a reminder that operators of the thousands of real estate blogs that have sprung up in the past few years can easily get themselves into legal trouble if they don’t tend their blogs carefully. People who post messages on such blogs need to be careful, too. via Daily Herald
Update: I had not read these posts by Vlad at Go Beyond MLS and Greg at Bloodhound Blog on an action being taken against Vlad. The result is that an vendor did not like the post by Vlad and is now being threatened with a lawsuit.
The fine line is tough, but if you read his post he is writing from his opinion. The law is fairly straight forward on this topic and Vlad should win. The problem is that anyone can file a suit and they tend to do so locally. It can get very expensive very quickly.
One thing we have is the power of a group as bloggers to fight these issue. So lend your support to Vlad and show that the backlash is not worth the fight to attack a fellow.
Thanks Tom..someone has finally found a way to make sure that the pig smells more palatable.
Ines, do the semantics really ...
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Great find Tom, and completely sensible. 
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Is there any way you can update these numbers to reflect current rates? 
Comment by Greg Swann on 23 May 2008:
Bless you for doing this, Tom. I wrote the post I did with one of two objectives in mind, either to get them to see that the cure was worse than the disease or to get them to pick on someone more their own size. Neither strategy worked, alas, so I’m delighted to hear your voice in the chorus against this injustice. Here’s the ironic twist no novelist would ever expect you to believe: Vlad was raised in the Soviet Union. I’m sure he expected more from “the land of the free” than he is getting.
Comment by Roberta Murphy on 23 May 2008:
Tom,
I am watching this case closely and would encourage all bloggers (and their vendors) to make at least a casual study of libel law. The e-perks situation seems to be more about strong-armed intimidation than protection of any good reputation (or what’s left of it at this point).
Comment by Vlad on 23 May 2008:
Thanks,
I can’t tell you how much support I receive, from visitors from Greg’s blog.
It has been two days since they have issued their latest threat. I am not sure how long it takes to file a suit in CA.
What amazes me that these guys have no interaction in todays world of viral marketing and social media. The founder and CEO of ePerks has one contact on LinkedIn zero activity on any social network.
They are shooting themselves in the foot.
Comment by Vlad on 23 May 2008:
Thank you Greg,
Since you brought up the fact of me being raised in former Soviet Union I have to say that my “opponents” came from Iran where they were persecuted for their beliefs as well, so I am sure they can appreciate the “land of the free” as much as I do.
Comment by Gary Sattelberger on 24 May 2008:
Vlad, I wish you the best of luck to resolve this matter with positive result.
As a new blogger I am very wary, to say the least, of steeping into something like this. It’s a travesty when the bigger fish try to step on the smaller ones, seems like free speech gets stepped on way to much these days.
Hopefully, the blogging word will pick up on this and spread the word.
Comment by Andree on 25 May 2008:
Right on. We need to fight this kind of pressure on real estate bloggers on every level
Comment by Tony Sena on 25 May 2008:
I believe there is also a real estate agent in Miami that is being sued by a developer for information he reported on his blog about the development not moving forward.
It is a tragedy that these corporations are using their size and money to attack those that are sharing their opinions.
Good luck Vlad!