| Tax Consequences of a Settlement in a Tort Action |
| When a plaintiff and a defendant enter into a settlement of the plaintiff's tort action, the tax consequences of the settlement will depend upon whether the damages are allocated in the settlement agreement. More... |
| Appropriation Lawsuits |
| Privacy is the general right to be left alone and free from unwanted publicity. There are four well-established lawsuits for invasion of privacy: appropriation, false light, intrusion, and disclosure. This article gives examples of appropriation lawsuits. Appropriation is defined as the use of a person's name, likeness, or personality for the benefit of another. Defenses include that the matter is public or that the person who's privacy was invaded gave consentMore... |
| Tax Consequences to a Payor of a Damages Award |
| When a defendant has been ordered to pay a plaintiff damages in a tort action or has agreed to pay damages to the plaintiff under a settlement agreement, the damages that are paid by the defendant are generally treated for tax purposes as any other expenses that are paid by the defendant. The damages will generally be deductible if they are paid by the defendant directly and are not paid by the defendant's insurance company. The damages will generally be considered to be an ordinary business expense unless they relate to a capital asset and are considered to be a capital expenditure. Capital expenditures are not deductible. They can only be added to the defendant's basis for the capital asset. More... |
| Truth and Privilege Defenses to Defamation |
| Defamation lawsuits are not easy to win because the plaintiff must both prove the difficult elements of his or her case and avoid the many defenses to defamation. This article discusses some of the standard defenses to defamation, including truth and privilege.More... |
| Invasion of Privacy--False Light |
| The law provides everyone with some basic rights to privacy. Privacy is the general right to be left alone and free from unwanted publicity. Unreasonable invasion of one's privacy causes harm.More... |


