Slander

• Slander is a form of defamation that is spoken. To be slander, the statement must be provably false and spoken only in order to do harm to the individual named or referenced. The statement must also be spoken in public, or to a mass audience, such as on a radio or television broadcast, in order to be considered as defamatory. In Virginia, slander is defined as "defamation per se," meaning the statement may be consider slanderous if on face value it is harmful to a person's reputation. For example, if a person were to publicly state that another has committed a crime which she can prove she did not commit, the statement is slanderous regardless of context.
  
  

Libel

• Libel refers to defamatory statements that are made in written communication. Essentially, all defamatory states that are not delivered orally or though body language would be considered libel. Libel may be delivered through printed pictures as well. Virginia also considers libel as defamation per se, meaning that making provably false and harmful statements about another person is prosecutable regardless of context or outside information. If the written statement is harmful and false on the surface, it may be subject to litigation as libel.
  
  

Litigation

• Libel, slander and other forms of defamation are all handled the same way in Virgina. In the state, the exact words made in the statement must be used as the basis for the suit. The defendant of the case may be able to avoid liability if the statement was made to a person who had a reason to hear that statement or if the defendant did not know that the statement was false at the time the statement was made. In other words, if the statement is made out of error and not out of intention to harm, the defendant may be able escape any prosecution.
  
  

Proof

• As in other states, Virgina requires that plaintiffs be able to prove, through a preponderance of evidence, that the statement made was definitely false, that the statement did harm and that the statement was made without the defendant having done enough research to prove what was said was valid. In some cases, it must also be proved that the statement was made with malice, the intention to harm or disregard for the truth. This standard applies for both libel and slander in Virginia. In many cases, statements may be consider subjective (matters of opinion) rather than objective (demonstrably true or false), and thus are not subject to defamation actions as the statement can't be proved blatantly false.
  
  

Considerations

• As with other states, defamation cases, be they slander or libel, must be filed with the state civil court. When considering a defamation suit, consult a lawyer who specializes in defamation. Defamation lawyers know how best to proceed with the suit. The risks of bringing a defamation suit may include the harmful statement being repeated to an even larger audience than was originally intended.