nypost.com — Jerry Seinfeld insisted yesterday he ought to be the master of his own comic domain.Seinfeld didn't slander the woman who accused his wife of ripping off her cookbook, he said in legal papers filed yesterday in Manhattan federal court.
Aug 28, 2008 View in Crawl 4
barbarinoAug 29, 2008
I agree with the lady. He took it too far..
gutenpressAug 29, 2008
If he loses, does this mean that Apple might be able to sue Microsoft if Seinfeld "slanders" Mac OS X in the course of making his "Vista Rul3z!" commercials?
midtownerAug 29, 2008
I think the case isn't so frivolous as some of you seem to think. Slander is a publication to third persons of alleged facts which can be damaging to the character of the plaintiff. Here, among other things (but this is enough, and probably the most actionable part of the sentence), Seinfeld accused the plaintiff of being a "celebrity stalker." That goes beyond the pale of parody of a public figure (which she is one, IMHO, if nothing else just for the purposes of this set of facts). Stalking is a crime, the charge is somewhat believable, and it is an implication of fact. This is not like accusing Jerry Falwell of having his first sexual experience with his mother in an outhouse. The defense of truth shouldn't be insurmountable for her either. Since she is at the very least a limited purpose public figure, per New York Times v. O'Sullivan, the statement had to be made "with malice," which is legalese for saying that Seinfeld had to either know the statement was false or have been reckless with regard to the truth. I think it's debatable whether either party wins here, but I'd guess she has a decent shot.Saying that "I was just joking" is no defense to slander. Seinfeld's attorneys apparently don't take this suit very seriously if they're quoting movie bits in their Answer/Motion to Dismiss. Not knowing more than what the Post is telling us, I guess (or hope) they know more than I do about this case, because quoting movies in briefing to the court is not something I'd recommend.
littletadAug 30, 2008
You don't have a clue. The women suing Mrs. Seinfeld wasn't as rich, and couldn't find a publisher. Though the ones who did look over her work, had no trouble giving the green light to Mrs. Seinfeld's own book. Which by the way, "mysteriously" had the same recipes. Coincidence? Oh sure...