Maag sues Karmeier’s supporters for defamation

The Madison County Record is reporting that Gordon Maag filed a $110 million defamation lawsuit against the Coalition for Jobs, Growth and Prosperity, its chairman Ronald Gidwitz and treasurer Gregory W. Baise, as well as the Illinois Chamber of Commerce alleging defamation.

Law.com defines defamation as:

defamation
n. the act of making untrue statements about another which damages his/her reputation. If the defamatory statement is printed or broadcast over the media it is libel and, if only oral, it is slander. Public figures, including officeholders and candidates, have to show that the defamation was made with malicious intent and was not just fair comment. Damages for slander may be limited to actual (special) damages unless there is malice. Some statements such as an accusation of having committed a crime, having a feared disease or being unable to perform one’s occupation are called libel per se or slander per se and can more easily lead to large money awards in court and even punitive damage recovery by the person harmed. Most states provide for a demand for a printed retraction of defamation and only allow a lawsuit if there is no such admission of error.

Maag’s lawsuit takes issue with a flyer that was sent to Illinois voters in October by the Coalition for Jobs, Growth and Prosperity.   

The flyer in question:

       

Evan Schaeffer of the Legal Underground has taken the time to go through the Flyer’s claims and compare them to the verifiable facts. http://www.legalunderground.com/2004/12/judge_maags_def.html.  I think this needs more review.