Green Arrow
09-10-2014, 11:12 PM
Via Al Jazeera America (http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/9/9/fracking-free-speech.html):
What started as a short YouTube video and a couple of local news interviews about a Texas landowner being able to light his water on fire has ballooned into a free speech fight that’s being closely watched by anti-fracking activists across the country.
Steve Lipsky has complained for years that fracking company Range Resources polluted his drinking water and streams that run through his property. The company sued him in 2011 for defaming its reputation for environmental stewardship.
Now Lipsky will have a chance to argue his case in front of the Texas Supreme Court, The Texas Tribune reported this week. The court will decide whether his right to free speech renders Range’s defamation case moot. If the court rules in his favor, the company’s lawsuit will be thrown out. If that doesn’t happen, he may be on the hook for $3 million.
The case won’t be heard until December, but environmentalists are already drawing parallels between it and other incidents across the U.S. in which hydraulic fracturing companies and anti-fracking activists have butted heads. Lipsky’s supporters say his case adds to a growing list of instances that show governments and courts are too quick to kowtow to industry demands. But if he wins, they say, it could embolden the anti-fracking movement across the country by letting activists know they’re free to badmouth fracking companies without fear of retribution.
“Range has a right to protect its reputation, but the speech they’re complaining about is protected speech,” Lipsky’s lawyer Joe Sibley said. “If we’re going to allow companies to sue people for defamation every time they don’t like what’s being said, then that basically allows corporations to silence public participation.”
Lipsky’s saga began in 2010, when he found that he could ignite the wells and streams on his property in Parker County by holding a lighter up to them. He uploaded videos of his discovery to YouTube, was interviewed by local reporters and was featured in the documentary “Gasland Part II.” He blamed drilling by Range Resources in the nearby Barnett Shale for his misfortune. The Environmental Protection Agency agreed and ordered Range to pay for fresh drinking water for Lipsky and one of his neighbors. But then the EPA dropped its investigation without giving reason, and the Texas Railroad Commission — which oversees fracking in the state — said there was insufficient evidence linking Range to the contamination.
Given the apparent lack of evidence, Range has accused Lipsky of defaming the company. The Texas Supreme Court will have to look into whether a 2011 tort reform law would allow the court to dismiss Range’s case before it is heard in a lower court. But regardless of what the court decides, his lawyer says the damage has already been done.
I think the most telling part of this is what Lipsky's lawyer said: "If we’re going to allow companies to sue people for defamation every time they don’t like what’s being said, then that basically allows corporations to silence public participation."
Should companies really be allowed to sue private citizens for exercising their right to free speech?
What started as a short YouTube video and a couple of local news interviews about a Texas landowner being able to light his water on fire has ballooned into a free speech fight that’s being closely watched by anti-fracking activists across the country.
Steve Lipsky has complained for years that fracking company Range Resources polluted his drinking water and streams that run through his property. The company sued him in 2011 for defaming its reputation for environmental stewardship.
Now Lipsky will have a chance to argue his case in front of the Texas Supreme Court, The Texas Tribune reported this week. The court will decide whether his right to free speech renders Range’s defamation case moot. If the court rules in his favor, the company’s lawsuit will be thrown out. If that doesn’t happen, he may be on the hook for $3 million.
The case won’t be heard until December, but environmentalists are already drawing parallels between it and other incidents across the U.S. in which hydraulic fracturing companies and anti-fracking activists have butted heads. Lipsky’s supporters say his case adds to a growing list of instances that show governments and courts are too quick to kowtow to industry demands. But if he wins, they say, it could embolden the anti-fracking movement across the country by letting activists know they’re free to badmouth fracking companies without fear of retribution.
“Range has a right to protect its reputation, but the speech they’re complaining about is protected speech,” Lipsky’s lawyer Joe Sibley said. “If we’re going to allow companies to sue people for defamation every time they don’t like what’s being said, then that basically allows corporations to silence public participation.”
Lipsky’s saga began in 2010, when he found that he could ignite the wells and streams on his property in Parker County by holding a lighter up to them. He uploaded videos of his discovery to YouTube, was interviewed by local reporters and was featured in the documentary “Gasland Part II.” He blamed drilling by Range Resources in the nearby Barnett Shale for his misfortune. The Environmental Protection Agency agreed and ordered Range to pay for fresh drinking water for Lipsky and one of his neighbors. But then the EPA dropped its investigation without giving reason, and the Texas Railroad Commission — which oversees fracking in the state — said there was insufficient evidence linking Range to the contamination.
Given the apparent lack of evidence, Range has accused Lipsky of defaming the company. The Texas Supreme Court will have to look into whether a 2011 tort reform law would allow the court to dismiss Range’s case before it is heard in a lower court. But regardless of what the court decides, his lawyer says the damage has already been done.
I think the most telling part of this is what Lipsky's lawyer said: "If we’re going to allow companies to sue people for defamation every time they don’t like what’s being said, then that basically allows corporations to silence public participation."
Should companies really be allowed to sue private citizens for exercising their right to free speech?