David A. Michel quoted in Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly on social media defamation claim

David A. Michel, partner in the firm’s Litigation Department, was quoted in a Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly article titled, “Attorney loses bid to revive claim he was defamed in social media post.” This article dives into the case Lucey v. Kinnon, in which plaintiff, a Malden attorney, brought forth a defamation claim based on a comment made towards him on Facebook by defendant, former Malden City Councilor. It was decided that what ensued was not enough for plaintiff to uphold a defamation claim against the defendant, based on the judge’s decision that the comment was rhetorical hyperbole, not an actual fact.

From the article:

David A. Michel, a civil litigator in Boston, agreed that the panel reached the correct result on the defamation claim.

The ruling on the defendant’s anti-SLAPP motion in certain ways related back to its treatment of Lucey’s defamation lawsuit, Michel noted.

“Just because you made one initial statement that counts as petitioning activity and the fact that you then got into an ad hominin, puerile exchange with a private citizen in the comments section following that post doesn’t mean you get the benefit [of the anti-SLAPP statute],” Michel said. “Insulting a private citizen who disagreed with your take on an issue or your petitioning activity doesn’t get the same protection as your petitioning activity.”

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