Defamation is the communication of a false statement that harms someone’s reputation, and a victim of defamation may be entitled to monetary damages. However, when an allegedly defamatory statement is made by a legislator in the course of their duties, the lawmaker is almost always immune from suit.
Mummelgrummel [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
The common law concept of absolute immunity for legislative activities is well established and codified in the Tennessee Governmental Tort Liability Act, which provides in part that “All members of boards, commissions, agencies, authorities, and other governing bodies of any governmental entity . . . shall be immune from suit arising from the conduct of the affairs of such board, commission, agency, authority, or other governing body.” Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-20-201(b). The plaintiff argued that, although the comments admittedly took place in a city council meeting, Wyatt should not be immune from suit and should be liable because the discussion had centered on “electioneering and politics” as opposed to the protected topic of “affairs of government.”
The trial court and court of appeals, however, were “absolutely immune” to plaintiffs’ arguments and found that Wyatt’s statements arose from the conduct of the affairs of city council, falling within the scope of legislative function and protected under the law.
