Lindsay Lohan's Parents Want Her To Sue A Senator Who Made Fun Of Lindsay

Defamation

from the that's-not-how-any-of-this-works dept

Over the past few years we’ve written about some really dumb lawsuits (or threats of lawsuits) filed by actress Lindsay Lohan. There was that time she sued E*Trade for $100 million because it had a baby in its commercial, named Lindsey, who was described as a “boyfriend-stealing milkaholic,” which she insisted must be a reference to her (think about that one for a second…). Or there was the time she claimed that a jewelry store releasing surveillance tape footage of her stealing a necklace violated her publicity rights. Then she sued the rapper Pitbull for a lyric “I got it locked up like Lindsay Lohan” (and, bizarrely, that one included accusations of a plagiarized filing by her lawyer. And, of course, most famously, Lohan spent years battling Take Two Interactive, claiming a ditzy starlet character in Grand Theft Auto was also a violation of her publicity rights.

Apparently she comes by this apparent proclivity to threaten and/or file nutty lawsuits honestly. Because her parents were reported as threatening to sue a US Senator for making a reference during a hearing to Linsday Lohan. They later “clarified” that they would not be the plaintiffs, but that they’re encouraging Lindsay to sue. Here’s the original report, though:

Michael and Dina Lohan are planning to sue Sen. John Kennedy (R-Louisiana) over the ?slanderous comments? that he made about their daughter, actress Lindsay Lohan, on Wednesday during a congressional hearing on the Equifax data breach.

The comments occurred as Richard Smith, the former CEO of Equifax, the credit reporting company that was hacked last month, was being questioned about signing a $7.25 million IRS contract for identity verification services. The deal could reap profits for the company as a result of the hack.

?Why in the world should you get a no-bid contract right now?? Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Nebraska) asked Smith. Kennedy added, ?You realize to many Americans right now, that looks like we?re giving Lindsay Lohan the keys to the minibar.? Smith paused for a moment before responding, ?I understand your point.? The ?Mean Girls? star, originally of Cold Spring Harbor and Merrick, has spoken about her past struggles with drugs and alcohol.

So, uh, let us count the many, many, many ways in which this is not “slanderous.” (And we originally had the fact that Lohan’s parents had no standing to sue, but have removed that since they’ve clarified they just want her to sue).

1. It was a figure of speech, not a false statement of fact about Lohan.
2. Even if there were a false statement of fact (there wasn’t) there’s no way that such a statement meets the “actual malice” claim — meaning that it was done with knowing falsity or with reckless disregard for the truth.
3. Under the Westfall Act, everyone in Congress is effectively immune from defamation lawsuits for things they say as part of their job — especially when said on the floor or in a committee hearing.
4. And, again, for emphasis, Senator Kennedy didn’t say anything defamatory about Lohan.

Who knows if she’ll actually go ahead and sue, but Michael Lohan insists that he’s trying to find a lawyer to handle this, and told the site “Gossip Cop” (linked above) that merely associating Linsday’s name with Equifax is what he found to be slanderous.

?Dina and I are seeking legal counsel for Lindsay regarding the slanderous comments and unprofessional behavior of Senator John Kennedy (R-La.),? he says. ?His comment and analogy was inappropriate, slanderous and unwarranted. How dare he associate Lindsay with this case? Tell me, does he have a family member or friend with a former addiction problem? Wow, and he?s a senator??

Hopefully, whatever lawyer he finds explains to him that this is not at all how defamation works. In his updated statement to Gossip Cop, he confuses matters even more:

?While Dina and I realize we can?t sue Senator Kennedy for his bullying statements, Lindsay can. I advised her to seek counsel through a friend who is a well-known federal attorney in New Orleans.? He adds, ?This has got to stop. Lindsay has turned her life around and does wonderful humanitarian work.?

Again, even assuming that it’s true that Linsday has “turned her life around” (good for her), that has nothing to do with whether or not she can sue over the Senator’s statement. Unfortunately, it appears that Lindsay may actually be listening to her parents on this one. She tweeted the following:

It’s a picture of her holding up a water bottle, and saying: “This is the only thing I keep in my mini bar these days – glad I found lawyer.com they are helping me out.” It also includes a winking emoji and a blowing a kiss emoji — which, we hope, means she’s making fun of the situation, rather than following through with an actual lawyer.

Filed Under: defamation, dina lohan, free speech, john kennedy, lindsay lohan, michael lohan