Posted by Eugene Volokh:
The *Washingtonienne* Lawsuit, Invasion of Privacy, and Restoring One's Good
Name:
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2006_12_24-2006_12_30.shtml#1167317687
This [1]AP account (noted below by [2]Jonathan) reports:
When Robert Steinbuch discovered his girlfriend had discussed
intimate details about their sex life in her online diary, the
Capitol Hill staffer didn't just get mad. He got a lawyer....
Neither Steinbuch nor his attorney returned phone calls seeking
comment. In court, attorney Jonathan Rosen said Steinbuch wants to
restore his good name....
It seems to me that Steinbuch can't be trying to restore his good name
here. Unless some new claim has been [3]added to the complaint, this
is simply a "civil action for invasion of privacy for public
revelation of private facts," not a defamation claim. Nothing in this
lawsuit will "restore [Steinbuch's] good name." In fact, to the extent
that the original blog besmirched Steinbuch's good name, the extra
publicity created by the lawsuit will only besmirch that name further.
A libel lawsuit will often have a similar effect, but at least the
plaintiff could hope that a favorable verdict will announce to the
world that defendant's allegations against the plantiff were false,
and that the world should see the plaintiff in a better light. A
disclosure of private facts lawsuit can at most transfer money to the
plaintiff, and compensate him for the emotional distress that he has
assertedly suffered because of the defendant's statements. It can't
restore the plaintiff's good name -- or, to be precise, the reputation
that plaintiff had before these "private intimate facts" (not lies but
facts) were revealed.
References
1. http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/fn/4428178.html
2. http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2006_12_24-2006_12_30.shtml#1167254142
3.
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=res&cd=1&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnews.findlaw.com%2Fhdocs%2Fdocs%2Ftorts%2Fsteinbuchvcutler51805cmp.pdf&ei=sC-TReWBM5CygwPTg-y3Dw&usg=__e5Ad3Mck17Vsnila8UIo9R30xlI=&sig2=sd2q8PJGJvftv9R5NZT0jQ
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