Grade: F
Idaho has no anti-SLAPP law.
Note: Coeur D’ Alene resident and blogger Bill McCrory discusses efforts to persuade a state legislator of the need for such a law on his blog: OpenCdA.com.
From Mike Masnick with Techdirt:
"Mother Jones, the well-known, politically-focused publication, has prevailed in a ridiculous SLAPP suit filed by billionaire Frank VanderSloot. VanderSloot was upset about a 2012 profile that Mother Jones published about him, his multi-level marketing, dietary supplement company Melaleuca, and the millions of dollars he was donating to Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign. VanderSloot insisted that the article was defamatory, though you’ll have to squint really hard to figure out where and how.
Plaintiffs filed a defamation lawsuit against some known defendants as well as some anonymous John Doe defendants in federal court over statements posted to Complaintsboard.com.
Recent defamation suits in Idaho have highlighted the ability of wealthy parties to use frivolous legal claims to unfairly drain the resources of their less affluent opponents. Idaho is one of only 18 states who have no anti-SLAPP law on the books currently. Opinion writer Bryan Clark discusses the need for a state-wide anti-SLAPP law here.