Someone is saying terrible things about you. You want to sue. Attorney Brian Dettman has bad news: most defamation cases aren’t worth pursuing.
The problem isn’t winning – it’s collecting. As one attorney put it: ‘It’s just a piece of paper unless you can collect it.’
If the person defaming you doesn’t have significant assets, you could win a judgment and still never see a dime. You’d spend money on legal fees pursuing someone who can’t pay. When asked about defendants who are ‘cash poor with assets,’ Dettman noted it depends – potentially a home equity loan could be pursued.
One viewer raised an important question about defamation against public institutions: ‘I have one against a public school – no one will listen to me in my small corrupt town.’
For a defamation case to make financial sense, the person spreading lies needs CEO money or orthopedic surgeon money – someone who can cut a $50,000 check without thinking twice.
It’s not fair, but it’s reality. About 1 in 30 defamation inquiries Dettman receives actually make sense to pursue.
Defamation Cases: Why They Usually Don’t Make Sense to Pursue
Defamation cases are a problem. It’s not fair. But the person running their mouth needs to have REAL money if you are going to have a viable defamation case.
https://www.tiktok.com/@dettmanlawinjurylawyer/video/7539600680521125150
Once a week, once every other week I file a lawsuit. However, defamation cases – they kind of suck. If you’re gonna have a viable defamation case, you have to make sure that the person that is running their mouth and saying the defamatory statements has money. And I’m talking CEO money, orthopedic surgeon money, somebody that can cut a check for $50,000 and not think twice about it. Because if the person that is saying things about you doesn’t have that type of money, you can sue them, you can get a big piece of paper that says you’re entitled to this amount of money, but if they don’t have a pot to piss in, then you’ve just spent all that time, energy, money, and effort pursuing something that is not going to be fruitful at the end of the day – that is not going to put any money in your pocket. Personal injury lawyers like me, our job is to get our clients compensated, to get them paid for what they have endured. But if the other side doesn’t have any money, then it doesn’t make sense to pursue that defamation case. Generally speaking, maybe one in about 30 defamation cases where somebody calls me, it makes sense to pursue that case.
