The American Bar Association represents roughly 400,000 attorneys in the United States. Their mission statement says:
To serve equally our members, our profession and the public by defending liberty and delivering justice as the national representative of the legal profession
In the interest of justice and due to the sheer number of lawsuits filed on behalf of Donald Trump over the years, the A.B.A. commissioned a report about his litigation history and they came to the conclusion that he’s nothing more than a “libel bully.” From the New York Times:
Alarmed by Donald J. Trump’s record of filing lawsuits to punish and silence his critics, a committee of media lawyers at the American Bar Association commissioned a report on Mr. Trump’s litigation history. The report concluded that Mr. Trump was a “libel bully” who had filed many meritless suits attacking his opponents and had never won in court.
But the bar association refused to publish the report, citing “the risk of the A.B.A. being sued by Mr. Trump.”
Yes, Donald Trump is such a fan of frivolous lawsuits, the A.B.A. decided NOT to publish the full report. Because he might sue them. If that sounds crazy to you, you aren’t alone:
David J. Bodney, a former chairman of the media-law committee, said he was baffled by the bar association’s interference in the committee’s journal.
“It is more than a little ironic,” he said, “that a publication dedicated to the exploration of First Amendment issues is subjected to censorship when it seeks to publish an article about threats to free speech.”
At issue is the language of calling Donald Trump a “bully.” Needless to say, some A.B.A. members and leaders are outraged that the report wasn’t published. You can read their full reaction at the New York Times.
During his presidential campaign, Donald Trump has threatened to file at least 20 different lawsuits. You can read the full list, compiled by Christianna Silva, at fivethirtyeight.com.
Can you even imagine how busy his lawyers will be after the election? If he can still afford them?
Tuesday, Oct 25, 2016 · 3:51:08 PM +00:00
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Jen Hayden
The A.B.A. did end up publishing the report after all and it is fantastic:
Donald J. Trump is a libel bully. Like most bullies, he's also a loser, to borrow from Trump's vocabulary.
Trump and his companies have been involved in a mind-boggling 4,000 lawsuits over the last 30 years and sent countless threatening cease-and-desist letters to journalists and critics.[1]
But the GOP presidential nominee and his companies have never won a single speech-related case filed in a public court.
This article examines seven speech-related cases brought by Trump and his companies, which include four dismissals on the merits, two voluntary withdrawals, and one lone victory in an arbitration won by default. Media defense lawyers would do well to remind Trump of his sorry record in speech-related cases filed in public courts when responding to bullying libel cease-and-desist letters.
Trump's lawsuits are worthy of a comedy routine, as when Trump sued HBO comedian Bill Maher for suckering Trump into sending his birth certificate to prove he was not the "spawn" of an orangutan, and Trump hit back with a $5-million breach-of-contract lawsuit, only to withdraw it after the Hollywood Reporter ridiculed it. Can anyone say Hustler v. Falwell?[2]
Orangutans and joking aside, this examination of Trump's libel losses also provides a powerful illustration of why more states need to enact anti-SLAPP laws to discourage libel bullies like Trump from filing frivolous lawsuits to chill speech about matters of public concern and run up legal tabs for journalists and critics.
You can read the full report at medialaw.org.