{"id":308516,"date":"2024-03-15T07:56:05","date_gmt":"2024-03-15T06:56:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=308516"},"modified":"2024-03-15T07:56:08","modified_gmt":"2024-03-15T06:56:08","slug":"a-jury-found-climate-skeptic-liable-for-defamation-legal-experts-say-he-has-a-chance-to-win-on-appeal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=308516","title":{"rendered":"A Jury Found Climate Skeptic Liable For Defamation \u2014 Legal Experts Say He Has A Chance To Win On Appeal"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From The Daily Caller<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

NICK POPE<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

CONTRIBUTOR<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A right-of-center pundit is appealing a February ruling that found him liable for defaming a prominent climate scientist, and legal experts told the Daily Caller News Foundation that he may have a good chance at a successful appeal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Washington, D.C., jury\u00a0concluded<\/a>\u00a0that Mark Steyn \u2014 a right-of-center political pundit who referenced a separate blog post comparing climate scientist Michael Mann to serial pedophile Jerry Sandusky for the former\u2019s purported data manipulation in his signature 1998 \u201chockey stick\u201d climate model \u2014 liable for defaming Mann. Steyn is\u00a0appealing<\/a>\u00a0the court\u2019s decision that he must pay Mann $1 million in punitive damages on top of $1 in compensatory damages, and legal experts told the DCNF that his case may be strong enough to win on appeal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMichael Mann\u2019s counsel did something you\u2019re not supposed to do. He invited the jury to send a message that these attacks on scientists have to stop and the jury, being a D.C. jury, decided they were going to send that message. Now, that\u2019s explicitly forbidden, both in the District of Columbia and in the United States at large,\u201d Steyn told the DCNF. \u201cYou\u2019re supposed to be trying \u2018Fred Smith.\u2019 He\u2019s the guy in the dock. You\u2019re not sending a message to millions of other potential \u2018Fred Smiths\u2019 out there. But that\u2019s what they did.\u201d (RELATED: Mark Steyn\u2019s Case Against Climategate Scientist Is Taking So Long A Key Witness Died)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Whole lot of \u201ccoping\u201d going on in denialville\u2026https:\/\/t.co\/ZQMIl76wJZ<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2014 Prof Michael E. Mann (@MichaelEMann) February 10, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Beyond Steyn\u2019s contention that Mann\u2019s counsel \u201cinvited the jury to send a message\u201d to critics of consensus positions on hot-button issues like climate change, legal experts told the DCNF that the ratio of compensatory and punitive damages could open the door for a favorable outcome for Steyn\u2019s appeal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt appears to me that Steyn has strong arguments that the punitive damages awarded are excessive under current law, particularly under Supreme Court decisions invalidating exorbitant punitive damage awards that are disproportionate to the actual damages suffered by the plaintiff,\u201d Jonathan Adler, the director of Case Western Reserve University School of Law\u2019s environmental law center, told the DCNF. \u201cBy this standard, a one-million-to-one ratio between punitive and compensatory damages would appear to be quite problematic.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat said, there are some complicating factors. On the one hand, punitive damages will always appear disproportionate in which compensatory damages are nominal. On the other hand, the arguments against disproportionate punitive damages would seem to be augmented by the First Amendment concerns,\u201d Adler continued. \u201cIf, as the jury concluded, Mann suffered no measurable harm from what Steyn wrote, the primary function of the punitive damage award is to discourage potentially inflammatory commentary about matters of public concern, and that raises serious First Amendment problems.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anthony Fargo, the director of the Center for International Media Law and Policy Studies at Indiana University, agreed with Adler\u2019s assessment of the ratio of punitive to compensatory damages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe appellate court is likely to look at this thing that jumps out at me here is the punitive damage award. I think an appellate court would be reluctant to second guess the jury as far as its findings of fact,\u201d Fargo told the DCNF. \u201cWhat they will probably raise an eyebrow at is the disproportionate amount of the punitive damage award as compared to the compensatory damage award.\u201d\u00a0(RELATED: Climate Activists Want Michael Moore\u2019s Doc Panning Green Energy Banned, Say It\u2019s Chock Full Of Misinformation)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Usually one hope to make money from a book. Steyn\u2019s probably cost him a million dollars: https:\/\/t.co\/ZQMIl774zx<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2014 Prof Michael E. Mann (@MichaelEMann) February 23, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The \u201chockey stick\u201d model was the result of combining several climate proxies into one model, purportedly demonstrating that global temperatures have increased drastically in the past several decades compared to the preceding centuries. Critics, including Steyn and Rand Simberg, have gone after<\/a> the \u201chockey stick\u201d model for many years, contending that it should not be considered credible because of its purported flaws.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe fact that a verdict was rendered against [Steyn] when you had a statistics expert like Abraham Wyner of the University of Pennsylvania testifying that Mann engaged in \u2018improper manipulation\u2019 of data that made his signature climate model \u2018misleading\u2019 demonstrates that the jury ignored the legal principle that the truth is a defense to any defamation claim,\u201d Hans von Spakovsky, a senior legal fellow for the Heritage Foundation, told the DCNF. \u201cFrom a legal standpoint, Steyn should have the ability to appeal on the basis that the jury ignored his defense that his criticisms that Mann had manipulated data were the truth, and therefore the jury committed a grievous legal error when it found against him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

National Review\u2019s editors\u00a0wrote<\/a>\u00a0Wednesday that the outlet \u2014 which Mann also sued before a court order led to the outlet being dropped from the suit \u2014\u00a0 is looking to \u201crecover more than a million of the dollars that we have lost defending [its] unalienable right to free speech\u201d from Mann. Before National Review was dropped from the suit, Mann wrote in emails that the outlet is a \u201cfilthy organization\u201d and a \u201cthreat to our children,\u201d\u00a0according<\/a>\u00a0to the outlet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter\u2019s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact\u00a0<\/em>licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A right-of-center pundit is appealing a February ruling that found him liable for defaming a prominent climate scientist, and legal experts told the Daily Caller News Foundation that he may have a good chance at a successful appeal.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":308521,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"A right-of-center pundit is appealing a February ruling that found him liable for defaming a prominent climate scientist, and legal experts told the Daily Caller News Foundation that he may have a good chance at a successful appeal.","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[691818056,691827612,691823943,691818215],"class_list":{"0":"post-308516","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-uncategorized","8":"tag-climate-change","9":"tag-defamation-lawsuits","10":"tag-mark-steyn","11":"tag-michael-mann","13":"fallback-thumbnail"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/0190809150019-amanpour-michael-mann-ipcc-climate-crisis-00000000-super-tease.jpg?fit=1100%2C619&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-1ig4","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":219516,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=219516","url_meta":{"origin":308516,"position":0},"title":"Litigious Climate Scientist on the Hook for Legal Fees","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"18\/09\/2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Stanford prof ordered to pay legal fees after dropping $10 million defamation case against another scientist","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/image-894.png?fit=1024%2C512&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/image-894.png?fit=1024%2C512&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/image-894.png?fit=1024%2C512&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/image-894.png?fit=1024%2C512&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":428719,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=428719","url_meta":{"origin":308516,"position":1},"title":"ExxonMobil Strikes Back: Judge Greenlights Defamation Suit Against California AG Over Recycling Claims","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"28\/02\/2026","format":false,"excerpt":"California, under Attorney General Rob Bonta (and previously in broader actions with Governor Gavin Newsom), has pursued aggressive legal actions against \"Big Oil\" companies like ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron, BP, and ConocoPhillips.","rel":"","context":"In \"Big Oil\"","block_context":{"text":"Big Oil","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=big-oil"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AQMvE5XTSRWNApdEUejRh39zoNMUkvvwibxE9eVujuLo2H9R4_IdrfUSElOCoFMQMyX6CEdRqnnl9qTkzRnI594sZPno8fUbAHJfrbIV3C_QBEOy-29G_mMc9YYPsaRYhsqpLuJDpDtwFUhz3HOQm2HR7ntS8A.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AQMvE5XTSRWNApdEUejRh39zoNMUkvvwibxE9eVujuLo2H9R4_IdrfUSElOCoFMQMyX6CEdRqnnl9qTkzRnI594sZPno8fUbAHJfrbIV3C_QBEOy-29G_mMc9YYPsaRYhsqpLuJDpDtwFUhz3HOQm2HR7ntS8A.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AQMvE5XTSRWNApdEUejRh39zoNMUkvvwibxE9eVujuLo2H9R4_IdrfUSElOCoFMQMyX6CEdRqnnl9qTkzRnI594sZPno8fUbAHJfrbIV3C_QBEOy-29G_mMc9YYPsaRYhsqpLuJDpDtwFUhz3HOQm2HR7ntS8A.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AQMvE5XTSRWNApdEUejRh39zoNMUkvvwibxE9eVujuLo2H9R4_IdrfUSElOCoFMQMyX6CEdRqnnl9qTkzRnI594sZPno8fUbAHJfrbIV3C_QBEOy-29G_mMc9YYPsaRYhsqpLuJDpDtwFUhz3HOQm2HR7ntS8A.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AQMvE5XTSRWNApdEUejRh39zoNMUkvvwibxE9eVujuLo2H9R4_IdrfUSElOCoFMQMyX6CEdRqnnl9qTkzRnI594sZPno8fUbAHJfrbIV3C_QBEOy-29G_mMc9YYPsaRYhsqpLuJDpDtwFUhz3HOQm2HR7ntS8A.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":298536,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=298536","url_meta":{"origin":308516,"position":2},"title":"Mann vs. Steyn: Climate Trial of the Century Continues – Guest: Phelim McAleer","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"27\/01\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"In the second week of the defamation trial, where serial litigator and special climate snowflake Michael Mann sued Mark Steyn and others for libel, the proceedings featured notable developments and surprising revelations. To discuss, Phelim McAleer, a filmmaker and journalist who is attending the trial in a federal court in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Climate change\"","block_context":{"text":"Climate change","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=climate-change"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0Screenshot-2024-01-27-155617.png?fit=1200%2C632&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0Screenshot-2024-01-27-155617.png?fit=1200%2C632&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0Screenshot-2024-01-27-155617.png?fit=1200%2C632&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0Screenshot-2024-01-27-155617.png?fit=1200%2C632&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0Screenshot-2024-01-27-155617.png?fit=1200%2C632&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":374002,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=374002","url_meta":{"origin":308516,"position":3},"title":"Court Delivers Massive Blow to Famed Climate Scientist Who Sued Critics","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"07\/04\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"A Washington, D.C., court rejected University of Pennsylvania climate scientist Michael Mann\u2019s bid to postpone his required payment of hundreds of thousands of dollars to National Review on Thursday.","rel":"","context":"In \"Michael Mann\"","block_context":{"text":"Michael Mann","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=michael-mann"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/0-MM.jpeg?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/0-MM.jpeg?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/0-MM.jpeg?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/0-MM.jpeg?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/0-MM.jpeg?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":411504,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=411504","url_meta":{"origin":308516,"position":4},"title":"Michael Mann: \u201cI\u2019m Not Owned! I\u2019m Not Owned!!\u201d \u2013 As He Shrinks into a Corn Cob","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"04\/11\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"If you\u2019ve been following the climate circus for as long as we have here at WUWT, you know that Michael Mann \u2013 the self-proclaimed guardian of the infamous \u201chockey stick\u201d graph \u2013 has been skating on thin ice for years. Well, it looks like that ice just cracked wide open.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Bill Gates\"","block_context":{"text":"Bill Gates","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=bill-gates"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/00Screenshot-2025-11-04-095729.png?fit=1200%2C598&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/00Screenshot-2025-11-04-095729.png?fit=1200%2C598&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/00Screenshot-2025-11-04-095729.png?fit=1200%2C598&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/00Screenshot-2025-11-04-095729.png?fit=1200%2C598&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/00Screenshot-2025-11-04-095729.png?fit=1200%2C598&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":297844,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=297844","url_meta":{"origin":308516,"position":5},"title":"Men at War \u2013 Mark Steyn Must Win (Part 1)","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"22\/01\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"I had been scrolling through Michael Mann\u2019s Twitter account, until Friday when I discovered I was blocked. Blocked even though I was yet to retweet or comment on anything to do with the defamation trial that he has brought against Mark Steyn and Rand Simberg \u2013 yet to comment on\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Climategate emails\"","block_context":{"text":"Climategate emails","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=climategate-emails"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0Feature-Blocked-Screenshot-2024-01-20-at-12.16.17%E2%80%AFpm.png?fit=1200%2C750&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0Feature-Blocked-Screenshot-2024-01-20-at-12.16.17%E2%80%AFpm.png?fit=1200%2C750&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0Feature-Blocked-Screenshot-2024-01-20-at-12.16.17%E2%80%AFpm.png?fit=1200%2C750&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0Feature-Blocked-Screenshot-2024-01-20-at-12.16.17%E2%80%AFpm.png?fit=1200%2C750&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0Feature-Blocked-Screenshot-2024-01-20-at-12.16.17%E2%80%AFpm.png?fit=1200%2C750&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/308516","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/121246920"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=308516"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/308516\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":308522,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/308516\/revisions\/308522"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/308521"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=308516"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=308516"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=308516"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}