Courtney Love will go to court this coming Monday in a groundbreaking case to defend an allegedly defamatory tweet she wrote in 2010. It marks the first time a celebrity has been called to defend a tweet in a US courtroom.
Love is being sued by attorney Rhonda Holmes, who the singer once hired for a fraud case against the managing the estate of Kurt Cobain. The 2010 tweet from Love read in part, “I was fucking devestated [sic] when Rhonda J. Holmes esq. of san diego was bought off.” She is also facing claims over a follow-up interview she gave.
If Love were to be found guilty, the jury would have to surmise that her Twitter followers reasonably understood the statement was about Holmes and her law firm. It must also decide that Love deliberately intended to send the tweet, which she claims was meant to be a direct message. Love can also pursue the defence that tweet was substantially true, that is that her former attorney did accept bribes.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, if Love pursues the defence that the tweet was accidentally made public, it could lead to a wider inquiry into Love’s larger behaviour. Love has actually been sued before for defamatory comments made on social media. That case was settled outside of court with Love agreeing to pay $430,000 in compensation to the defendant.
Holmes will likely seek greater damages because of the large exposure Love’s tweets garner. Other witnesses scheduled to give testimony in court are journalists, Courtney Love’s former assistants and experts in the economics and language of Twitter. Stay tuned for more of the trial details as they unfold.
