Courtney Love won a Twitter libel case where she was accused of defaming an attorney in a tweet she posted back in 2010.
Love’s case marks the first time ever that a court has heard a libel suit against someone using a social media site like Twitter. Courtney Love hired attorney Rhonda Holmes to represent her for a fraud case regarding her late husband Kurt Cobain’s estate. In her tweet she hinted that Holmes had been bought off.
Her tweet said, “I was (expletive) devastated when Rhonda J Holmes Esq of san diego was bought off” in response to a question from another Twitter user. That account has since been deleted.
Holmes in turn sued Love for defamation–seeking $8 million. Her attorneys wanted jurors to consider sending a message to those who use social media irresponsibly–as in making false statements.
The verdict in this case came Friday following about three hours of jury deliberation for the case initially referred to as “Twibel”–the first time Twitter and a libel suit had intersected. The jurors reportedly determined that Courtney Love’s tweet did in fact include false information, but found that she wasn’t aware that it wasn’t true. Courtney Love was all tooo happy to thank her attorneys–via her new Twitter account–following the reading of the verdict Friday.
I can't thank you enough Dongell Lawrence Finney LLP, the most incredible law firm on the planet.We won this epic battle. #justiceprevails
— Courtney Love Cobain (@Courtney) January 25, 2014
Mitchell Langberg, one of the attorneys representing Rhonda Holmes in the “Twibel” suit says his client is disappointed, but relieved to know that “the world now knows that Love’s statements were false.”
“At the end of the day, her biggest asset in life is her reputation,” Langberg said. “That she got back today.”
Do you think Courtney Love dodged a big, fast bullet on this one? She certainly isn’t known for having a stellar reputation. This can’t have been an easy case for this jury too deliberate. There are very few people alive today who don’t know who Courtney Love is, and what some of her past entails.
Image via Wikimedia Commons
