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3.11-8 Damages for Libel/Slander Per Se
Revised to January 1, 2008
In determining the amount of
general damages to award for the injury to the plaintiff's reputation, you
should consider what reputation the plaintiff had in the community when the
(statement / writing) was made. You should consider all of the
circumstances surrounding the making of the (statement / writing). You may
also compensate the plaintiff for damages that (he/she) will likely incur in
the future. These damages can include additional damage to (his/her)
reputation that occurs as a result of the bringing of this lawsuit.
In addition to general damages
awarded for the injury to the plaintiff's reputation, you may also award the
plaintiff what are called special damages, or damages for economic loss. To
recover special damages, however, the plaintiff must prove that (he/she)
suffered economic loss that was legally caused by the publication of the
defendant's defamatory (statement / writing), even where the defamation is
(libel / slander) per se. General and special damages together comprise
what are called compensatory damages, or damages that compensate the
plaintiff for (his/her) loss.
If you find that the plaintiff has
suffered a violation of (his/her) legal rights but (he/she) has not suffered
an actual injury, (he/she) is entitled at least to nominal damages. Nominal
damages may be awarded because you find that the defamatory material is of
an insignificant character, or because you find that the plaintiff had a bad
character, so that no substantial harm has been done to the plaintiff's
reputation, or there is no proof that serious harm has been done to the
plaintiff's reputation. Nominal damages are also awarded when they are the
only damages claimed and the action is brought for the purpose of
vindicating the plaintiff's character by a jury verdict that establishes
that the defamatory material was false.
Punitive damages, which in
Connecticut are limited to attorney's fees and expenses, may also be
awarded. Punitive damages may be awarded if you find that the defendant's
actions in this case were wilful, wanton or malicious, as I shall later
define these terms. These damages, however, are not awarded as a matter of
right, but rather as a matter of discretion, to be determined by you after
you consider all of the evidence. Both nominal and punitive damages also may
be awarded where the defamatory material is (libel / slander) per se.
To summarize, if the defamatory
material is (libel / slander) per se, the plaintiff is entitled to an award
of general damages for injury to reputation without proof of monetary loss,
and an award of special damages upon proof of actual injury or loss. You
may award punitive damages as a matter of discretion. At a minimum, where
(libel/slander) per se has been established, a plaintiff should receive an
award of at least nominal damages, usually one dollar, though not
necessarily anything more.
Notes
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