I’ve defended many Associations and their Boards/Board Members over the years in defamation actions. 2020 and 2021 saw a substantial rise in these actions being brought, and there’s no reason to believe 2022 and beyond will be any different.

Traditionally, in Pennsylvania, a lawsuit for defamation had to be filed in the county where the publication of the allegedly defamatory statement occurred. This all changed in November of 2021, when the Pennsylvania Supreme Court issued an opinion in Fox v. Smith, et al., 39 EAP 2019 (Nov. 17, 2021).

In Fox, Pennsylvania’s high court analyzed the venue issue taking into account internet-based publications (versus print-based, such as newspaper) of the alleged defamatory statement, and held that venue is appropriate in any county where publication of the defamatory statement occurred, even if it differs from the county where the injury (the making of the defamatory statement) actually occurred.

The Fox Court discussed that “under the applicable Rules of Civil Procedure, venue is proper … in counties in which a cause of action has arisen…” and “a cause of action for defamation arises where publication of defamatory statements occurs.” The Court went on the hold that “publication occurs where a third-party recipient understands the statement as being defamatory” and “when a person is defamed via a medium with worldwide accessibility, a cause of action may arise in multiple venues.”

Finally, the Court found that “per a straightforward application of the civil procedural rules, then, a plaintiff may select a single venue in a defamation action in any location in which publication and concomitant injury has occurred, albeit that publication and harm may have ensued in multiple counties.” A link to the Fox case is here.

Contact Hoffman Law LLC to discuss how we can assist your Association in handling and/or defending defamation allegations.

– Edward Hoffman, Jr., Esq., CCAL