As reviewers face legal actions over their postings on Yelp, Yelp is backing two federal laws to protect consumers from lawsuits for their online opinions. The Consumer Review Fairness Act (CRFA) would prevent companies from including gag clauses in contracts with consumers. The Speak Free Act would enable consumers to use an anti-SLAPP motion to dismiss a lawsuit preventing them from criticizing a company. The company would be liable for attorney fees. (San Francisco Chronicle, September 26, 2016, by Carolyn Said)
Noah Feldman thinks the CRFA would pass First Amendment muster since it encourages speech rather than restricting it but said as written the CRFA poses a problem in prohibiting hosts such as Amazon from making rules against negative reviews of the products on its site. The would abridge Amazon’s First Amendment rights. (Bloomberg News, June 30, 2016, by Noah Feldman)
The Speak Free Act offers protection to consumers who can’t afford protracted legal battles. If passed, the law would require companies to prove they would prevail against consumers. In the absence of that certainty, the case would be dismissed allowing the consumer to collect legal fees. (Mother Jones, July 20, 2016, by Josh Harkinson)