When celebrities defame.

Just a quick news item to throw out here. Dateline: London. Nicholas Cage has settled a defamation suit which he brought against Peggy Sue Got Married co-star Kathleen Turner, arising from some comments that Turner set down on paper in her pic-bio Send Yourself Roses. The suit was against Turner as well as her publishers. The gravamen of the complained-of comments were that Cage had been "arrested twice for drunk-driving and, I think, for stealing a dog. He'd come across a Chihuahua he liked and stuck it in his jacket."

A few thoughts on this. First, why was this suit brought in London? Possibly because the defamation laws of that country are more favorable to plaintiffs (with no pesky First Amendment to impose heightened scrutiny of public comment on public figures). Also, note that the allegations were of crimes - drunk driving and theft (even if the theft alleged would likely have been a petty one).

Publishing a falsely accusation that someone has committed a crime is libel per se, meaning that damages are presumed based on the very fact of the publication. And a criminal record is a fairly easy thing to prove or disprove. So, presuming that no such criminal record was forthcoming, having these three strikes against them (hostile local law, lack of need to prove damages, ease of proving falsity), it is easy to see why this case settled.

And on one final note of interest, under the settlement Cage gets his attorneys' fees (I would not be surprised in the least if those are substantial in a case like this, with high profile players on both sides), and the defendants will make a donation to charity.