“Necessity” and “Coercion” in Compelled Self-Defamation in Los Angeles and San Diego

There exists a long line of libel and slander rulings in California holding a plaintiff may not fabricate a cause of action by herself or himself publishing defamatory statements to others. The defendant must typically cause the publication. A plaintiff’s manufacturing a libel claim, for instance, does not create a valid legal cause of action. However, courts have created an …