Bill would change Nevada’s anti-Slapp law

CARSON CITY — A bill being sought in the Legislature by Wynn Resorts that critics argue would substantially weaken Nevada’s anti-SLAPP statute flew through the state Senate earlier this month and is now awaiting a hearing in the Assembly Judiciary Committee.

Opponents, including media representatives, plan to make their opposition known at a Friday Assembly Judiciary Committee hearing on Senate Bill 444.

“Anti-SLAPP statutes are important to protect free speech, because sometimes people sue just to silence their critics,” said Barry Smith, executive director of the Nevada Press Association. “After 2013, Nevada had one of the strongest anti-SLAPP laws in the country. SB444 would weaken it substantially.”

SLAPP lawsuits, an acronym meaning strategic lawsuit against public participation, are aimed at stifling free speech when individuals protest against a government action, such as a zoning issue at a planning commission meeting, or speak out on an issue of concern.

Anti-SLAPP laws are meant to protect against intimidation by organizations that can use the threat of a meritless civil lawsuit to stifle debate.

“SB 444 seems to be a solution in search of a problem that doesn’t exist,” Mark Hinueber, vice president of the Review-Journal, said Monday. “The current statute, as amended in the last legislative session, balances competing interests and should not be altered.”

Senate Bill 444 was heard April 6 by the Senate Judiciary Committee and won unanimous passage from the full Senate on April 15.

It would pull back Nevada’s law passed by lawmakers in 2013 that greatly expanded First Amendment protections to individuals who speak out about issues of public concern.

Mitchell Langberg, outside counsel to Wynn Resorts and an expert on anti-SLAPP statutes, said in testimony in support of the bill earlier this month that Nevada’s law was too weak prior to it being amended in 2013. It did not cover core First Amendment speech, he said.

But now the law is too broad, and the legal challenges of bringing a legitimate case are too difficult, Langberg said.

“I’m here to help you find the middle ground,” he told the committee.

Current law requires a claim to be proved on clear and convincing evidence on every element, and in a time frame that is too fast — seven days — to allow for a plaintiff to present a proper case showing statements are false, Langberg said. The statute also does not allow discovery that may be needed to present a case, he said.

SB444 would change the law to reflect these concerns, including allowing for discovery, Langberg said.

The bill also removes a provision allowing for additional compensation when a person is wrongfully sued and wins a dismissal of a lawsuit.

Judiciary Chairman Greg Brower, R-Reno, said the First Amendment clarification would allow someone to use the anti-SLAPP statute to cover an issue of public concern, such as a lawmaker cheating on travel expenses, but not an issue of simple curiosity, such as a public official having an affair.

The hearing on SB444 saw no other testimony either in favor or against before being passed out of the committee on April 7.

Anti-SLAPP laws have been in the news around the country in recent years related to critical online reviews of businesses on the website Yelp.

Wynn was involved in a defamation lawsuit where California’s anti-SLAPP statute resulted in the case being dismissed. Wynn sued for slander in federal court in California against hedge fund manager Jim Chanos for comments made at a symposium that included the statement of Chanos’ uncertainty “about the questionable business methods in Macau.”

The lawsuit was dismissed in March with prejudice, meaning it cannot be refiled.

In 2014 the Nevada Supreme Court upheld a $7.5 million defamation action brought by Wynn against “Girls Gone Wild” producer Joe Francis, who failed to pay a $2 million marker and said he planned on “exposing how exactly Mr. Wynn deceives his high-end customers.”

Contact Sean Whaley at swhaley@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3900. Find him on Twitter: @seanw801.