Supporters of Anti-SLAPP Legislation Urge Congressional Action
Supporters of the Securing Participation, Engagement and Knowledge Freedom by Reducing Egregious Efforts (Speak Free) Act (HR-2304) said Thursday it or other legislation to create a national statute to curb strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) is needed to encourage further growth of U.S. e-commerce. Congressional action on anti-SLAPP legislation also would give legislators a chance to foster a national environment that encourages free speech, anti-SLAPP stakeholders said during an Information Technology and Innovation Foundation briefing.
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“I would love to get this through [Congress] this year,” said Rep. Blake Farenthold, R-Texas, saying it has support from President Barack Obama. Farenthold and Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., bowed HR-2304 last year (see 1505140041). “I'm not sure the next president will” support HR-2304, Farenthold said, referencing GOP presidential hopeful Donald Trump's history of filing SLAPP lawsuits against critics. Several others referenced Trump's past SLAPP lawsuits, saying such suits favor entities who have the resources to go through a lengthy and costly legal process. “It's time to make the First Amendment great again,” Fletcher Heald lawyer Kevin Goldberg said.
Yelp Head of Federal Public Policy Laurent Crenshaw said he is increasingly hopeful momentum will build for federal anti-SLAPP legislation, saying a House Judiciary Committee hearing on HR-2304 is likely in May. Farenthold told us he's working with House Judiciary to schedule a hearing on anti-SLAPP laws, but the committee hasn't confirmed a hearing. The momentum from a House Judiciary hearing on anti-SLAPP legislation would hopefully lead to a committee markup of HR-2304 soon after, Crenshaw said. CTA Government Affairs Manager Michael Hayes said he is also hopeful momentum on HR-2304 is increasing but said congressional action on the bill is likely to be slow.
California, Texas and many other states already have enacted strong anti-SLAPP statutes, but “the First Amendment [of the U.S. Constitution] is a federal creation,” meaning a federal anti-SLAPP law is needed to guarantee free speech rights related to online reviews to all states, Farenthold said. Almost half of U.S. states still don't have anti-SLAPP laws and existing laws vary widely “in their strength and breadth,” said Public Participation Project Policy Director Evan Mascagni. A federal anti-SLAPP law would prevent “forum shopping” of SLAPP lawsuits to states that have no anti-SLAPP laws or weak laws, Mascagni said.