Supreme Court allows Michael Mann defamation case against National Review to go forward

Supreme Court of the US- 2019 by Fred Schilling, Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States is licensed under Wikimedia Commons Public Domain
The Supreme Court is allowing a defamation lawsuit brought by a prominent climate scientist against a free-market think tank and a conservative publication to move forward.

On Monday, the Supreme Court denied a petition by the Competitive Enterprise Institute and National Review magazine to rehear and dismiss the defamation lawsuit brought by well-known climate scientist Michael Mann. The Competitive Enterprise Institute and National Review have been fighting for years to dismiss the case before it goes to trial, but the Supreme Court’s denial means the case will move forward in D.C. district court.

The Supreme Court rejected the petition without comment. But Justice Samuel Alito, a conservative, dissented, arguing that the case addresses critical freedom of speech and freedom of the press issues.

“The petition in this case presents questions that go to the very heart of the constitutional guarantee of freedom of speech and freedom of the press: the protection afforded to journalists and others who use harsh language in criticizing opposing advocacy on one of the most important public issues of the day,” Alito wrote in his dissent.
“If the Court is serious about protecting freedom of expression, we should grant review,” he added.
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