Lawsuit Risks?

Discussion in 'Site Feedback' started by Nemo of Utopia, Mar 17, 2019.

  1. Nemo of Utopia

    Nemo of Utopia CHYOA Guru

    Ok, I'm not suggesting we ban anything here, (yet, ) but could the site be held liable in a court of law for infringement of personal identity or however the courts would phrase it for all those "rape Emma Watson" stories floating around and their ilk? I'm not talking "dominate Hermione Granger", that's clearly fan-fic parody, and thus fair use, but these actresses are actual living people, and the law is different there...
     
  2. Loeman

    Loeman Really Really Experienced

    Celebrities are fun.

    Bear in mind, I have basically no interest in celeb fic. But, is Emma Watson, or Scarlett Johansson, or Marilyn Monroe a real person?

    Well, yes, obviously all are really people.

    But, are the stories that use their names, the sounds and letters that produce their names, about their persons?

    As poorly written and characterized as so many of them are, one begins to wonder where shit quality ends and where physical and mental reality begins.

    Because, they are so, so very far separated.

    I read an Emma Watson (getting anally ravaged) story, and I don't know Emma any better than I do now.

    Which is, not at all.
     
  3. Nemo of Utopia

    Nemo of Utopia CHYOA Guru

    Yes, but "name and likeness" is a very strong legal concept, I'm not sure here but we might be on the hook for Lible...
     
  4. Loeman

    Loeman Really Really Experienced

    The good ol' 'pass the buck' rule is quite strong.

    I question our power, that we'd be first in line.
     
  5. Nemo of Utopia

    Nemo of Utopia CHYOA Guru

    Good point, Literotica would have the hammer brought down on it long before us.
     
  6. Loeman

    Loeman Really Really Experienced

    Good to have you alive, Nemo.
     
    Nemo of Utopia likes this.
  7. gene.sis

    gene.sis CHYOA Guru

    and most likely underage...
     
  8. Nemo of Utopia

    Nemo of Utopia CHYOA Guru

    Post-graduation, I guess? Because I've seen several of those...
     
  9. gene.sis

    gene.sis CHYOA Guru

    There might be some of them as well, though if you write 5 chapters about getting the first wand and choosing the house or describing the first flying lesson, erotic scenes will most likely feature underage characters.
     
  10. X4-184

    X4-184 Virgin

    Less so with celebrities, ironically. Defamation suits are notoriously difficult for public figures due to the (added) prerequisite of actual malice being established. Added to the fact that fan fiction is (by its very definition) fabricated, and it becomes almost impossible to make something stick.

    Admittedly, I don't think citing legal precedent is the best argument in (what is largely) a morally contentious issue. But if that's what's being used as the basis for a potential content ban, then rest assured it shouldn't be.
     
  11. brevdravis

    brevdravis Really Really Experienced

    IANAL, but from what I understand one of the major criteria for defamation is actual harm.

    I remember back in the day Penthouse publishing extremely detailed sexual fantasies regarding Gates McFadden which had no basis in fact. Never got sued.

    Yeah, a jerk with an axe to grind CAN sue, but lawyers don't like suing poor people. As soon as it get TOO popular, then they go after you. Just keep it low key, and you should be cool, IMHO.
     
  12. krm2116

    krm2116 Virgin

    Don't know about the legalities, but I find stories about real people to be kind of icky. Particularly if the story involves assault, degradation, humiliation, etc. It feels too real. To each their own I guess.
     
  13. Xenolan

    Xenolan Really Experienced

    I would imagine that most celebrities would be aware of the Streisand Effect, summarized as: "a phenomenon whereby an attempt to hide, remove, or censor a piece of information has the unintended consequence of publicizing the information more widely, usually facilitated by the internet." In a nutshell, the attempt to shut down such websites would result in drawing far more attention to them, and spreading the stories around to the point where they could no longer be removed even if the legal case was won.

    I am decidedly not a fan of such stories, but the odds are very low that lawsuits will result from them.
     
  14. gene.sis

    gene.sis CHYOA Guru

    I think that you can't really compare that with the Streisand Effect as it mainly bases on the tries to suppress reporting about illegal or morally questionable activity.

    In the case of celeb stories, the shitstorm might blow into the other direction. (If someone gets accused of sexual or child abuse, there are usually more victims (if existant) who finally pick up the courage to raise their voice.)

    Also, depending on the place of residence, the content might be subject to limitations of freedom of speech and freedom of art.