Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani Partner Joe Meadows, Chair of the firm’s Defamation & First Amendment practice, was recently featured in both the Maryland Daily Record and Missouri Lawyers Media in coverage examining the rapidly developing landscape of AI-generated defamation and how courts are beginning to test long-standing libel principles against new technologies.
The articles explore groundbreaking lawsuits in Maryland, Georgia, and Delaware involving “AI-assisted libel,” including false statements generated by large language models, search engines, and automated platforms. As courts weigh questions of falsity, fault, and publication in scenarios with little or no human authorship, the risk of defamation is expanding for AI developers, platforms, business users, and content creators.
Meadows explains that while traditional defamation standards remain the foundation of the analysis, the rise of algorithmically generated speech creates new theories of liability and uncertainty around who may be deemed the responsible “speaker.” He notes that plaintiffs are increasingly targeting not just the individuals who use AI tools but also the companies that design and deploy them.
The articles also highlight Meadows’ insights on the unsettled role of Section 230 immunity in the AI context. While online platforms have long been shielded from liability for third-party content, courts are now divided on whether AI-generated output qualifies as user content or as the platform’s own speech.
GRSM’s Defamation & First Amendment practice has been at the forefront of advising clients on these emerging risks, representing organizations, public figures, media companies, and technology-driven businesses facing defamation, false-light, digital media, and reputation-related claims. The team regularly defends high-profile matters involving online speech, algorithmic content, and complex publication issues, while also advising clients on risk mitigation and the responsible adoption of new technologies.
Meadows litigates and counsels on defamation, First Amendment issues, media law, anti-SLAPP statutes, and reputation management strategy, representing clients nationwide.
Read the full coverage in Courts test new frontier of defamation law as AI enters the mix from the Maryland Daily Record, and AI Defamation Law: Courts Test New Boundaries for OpenAI, Microsoft, Google from Missouri Lawyers Media. Subscription may be required.