Slander
Columbia (IL)
I own a mobile tool franchise when I first started I had a customer that had a account payment of $40.92/wk to a credit agency of which he had purchased some tools. For about the first month I visited the customer I collected $850.00 to apply to this account which had him about 3 months paid ahead. Then I started collecting money from him on my truck account for about 1.5 months. I then split up payments for each account. This customers business moved out of my region to a different mobile tool store area, where a different franchise was calling on him. The customers accounts were paid ahead when he left me and I have paper and computer evidence of this. Just this week I was contacted by a business rep to meet him at the customers new location to discuss something. so I did. It turns out there were 7 other representitives from the coorperation there. They proceeded to call the customers account due or reposses his tools. The customer is a shop owner and they did this in front of one of his customers and 2 of his employees. The main business rep. then looked at a few documents and told the customer and the other creditors that this was my fault he was getting repossesed. I was appalled at this. The customer proceeded to tell the reps. That he had never been more satisfied with a franchisee as he was with me. When I serviced his account he never got even one phone call from the creditors that held this account. After the business reps left I talked with the customer it turns out he has been giving payments to the new franchisee that services his account now and the money has not been getting applied to his account. Do I have a case? -

Slander
Columbia (IL)
I own a mobile tool franchise when i first started i had a customer that had a account payment of $40.92/wk to a credit agency of which he had purchased some tools. For about the first month i visited the customer i collected $850.00 to apply to this account which had him about 3 months paid ahead. Then i started collecting money from him on my truck account for about 1.5 months. I then split up payments for each account. This customers business moved out of my region to a different mobile tool store area, where a different franchise was calling on him. The customers accounts were paid ahead when he left me and i have paper and computer evidence of this. Just this week i was contacted by a business rep to meet him at the customers new location to discuss something., so i did. It turns out there were 7 other representitives from the coorperation there. they proceeded to call the customers account due or reposses his tools. The customer is a shop owner and they did this in front of one of his customers and 2 of his employees. The main business rep. then looked at a few documents and told the customer and the other creditors that this was my fault he was getting repossesed. I was appauled at this. The customer proceeded to tell the reps. that he had never been more satisfied with a franchisee as he was with me. When i serviced his account he never got even one phone call from the creditors that held this account. After the business reps left i talked with the customer it turns out he has been giving payments to the new franchisee that services his account now and the money has not been getting applied to his account. Do i have a case? -


Here is something I wrote some time ago: "Briefly - Generally in law libel refers to permanent/written statements and slander refers to non-permanent/spoken statements. Defamation (of character) covers both categories.

You must be damaged - and prove damages - in order to recover. The statements (either written or spoken) must be false but presented as though they were true and be beyond offensive, derogatory or insulting. Such statement must rise to a level which actually harms a person’s reputation. In general the person making the statement must either know it isn’t true or make the statement without attempting to verify if it is true.

The defense to defamation is that the information was not presented as the truth (which covers gossip), that the information was never secret (privileged) and was always public."