COLUMBUS, Ohio — It will be harder to file baseless lawsuits in Ohio aimed at silencing public criticism, if a new bill introduced Tuesday makes it into law.
State Sen. Matt Huffman’s bill would set up a process through which a judge could quickly dismiss a defamation lawsuit if they determine it was filed in response to constitutionally protected free speech.
The bill, which Huffman has dubbed the Ohio Citizen Participation Act, is meant to combat a legal strategy known as Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation, or SLAPP. The term refers to lawsuits designed primarily to stifle criticism by drowning opponents in legal fees.
The bill is backed by groups including the Ohio News Media Association, the conservative Americans for Prosperity and the ACLU, as well as Senate President Larry Obhof, a Medina Republican. It wouldn’t affect legal standards for defamation which make it illegal for people to intentionally say or publish false things meant to harm someone’s reputation.
“We have to have public discussion about difficult issues, and somebody needs to do that, whether it’s the newspaper or online or TV or radio. And if those folks are in inhibited in some way, it’s doing a disservice to government and a disservice to the Constitution,” said Huffman, a Lima Republican.
Huffman said his bill isn’t a response to any specific situation. But supporters previously have cited an unusual 2014 court ruling in which state appellate judges called on Ohio lawmakers to pass an anti-SLAPP law as they ruled against Bob Murray and Murray Energy, which sued the Chagrin Valley Times over articles the small weekly newspaper wrote about a protest of the company.
Beyond journalism and other public criticism of political issues, supporters of the bill say it also provides protection to domestic violence victims who may be sued after speaking out against their abusers. Thirty-six other states, including Florida and Texas, have their own anti-SLAPP laws.
Huffman introduced a similar bill in 2017 that failed to make it through the committee review process. He said the new version drops language aimed at protecting anonymous internet commenters that Huffman thought caused the proposal to lose support among his fellow state lawmakers.