The plaintiff,M,quit her job because her then-employer,Mr.C,made unwelcome sexual advances and her career was not advanced as promised.Subsequently,Mr.C,on his own initiative,called her past employer,her present employer,and an instructor at vocational school and said that M was a thief,a false statement.As a result of that call,M lost her new job.Which of the following is true?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Mr.C's actions constitute defamation because he made a false statement to third parties that caused harm to M's reputation and employment. Defamation can be either libel (written) or slander (spoken), and in this case, since the defamatory words were spoken and not written, it would be considered slander, not libel, making option B correct. The other options are incorrect based on the information provided: A is incorrect because the statement is directly defamatory and does not require innuendo to be understood as damaging; C is incorrect because the defamation was spoken (slander) rather than written (libel); D and E are incorrect because Mr. C's statement was false and made with malice, negating the defenses of fair comment and qualified privilege.

The Plaintiff,M,quit Her Job Because Her Then-Employer,Mr