Grants an affirmative defense for certain privileged communications, including communications made by an individual, without malice, regarding an incident of sexual assault, harassment, or discrimination.
S0290 would create a new statutory affirmative defense in Rhode Island defamation law for individuals who make communications about incidents of sexual assault, harassment, or discrimination, so long as the communication was made without malice or gross negligence. The bill defines covered communications broadly to include factual information about sexual assault, sexual harassment, workplace harassment or discrimination, housing discrimination or retaliation, racial discrimination, cyber sexual bullying, and sexual harassment in higher education.
The measure also limits who can invoke the defense: it applies only to a person who has, or at any time had, a reasonable basis to file a complaint about sexual assault, harassment, or discrimination, whether or not a complaint was actually filed. If a defendant prevails in a defamation action by relying on this defense, the bill would require an award of reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs, and would add treble damages for harm caused by the defamation suit, in addition to any other relief otherwise available under law.
The bill would amend chapter 9-1 of the Rhode Island General Laws by adding a new section governing defamation actions tied to reports or statements about sexual misconduct and discrimination. It would expand protections for complainants and potential complainants by giving them a statutory defense against defamation claims and by shifting litigation costs and damages toward unsuccessful plaintiffs who sue over such communications. The affected parties include individuals reporting misconduct, employers, housing providers, educational institutions, and others implicated in workplace, housing, racial, or campus discrimination and harassment disputes.
Based on the bill text and the available context, the measure appears to be framed as a protective, anti-retaliation bill intended to encourage reporting of sexual assault, harassment, and discrimination without fear of defamation liability. There are no committee transcripts or recorded votes provided, so there is no documented opposition or support in the supplied materials beyond the bill’s sponsor list and caption. The overall tone of the proposal is remedial and victim-protective.
The main potential point of contention is the bill’s expansion of legal protection for statements made about sensitive allegations, which could be viewed by critics as making it harder to pursue defamation claims when false accusations are alleged. Supporters would likely emphasize the need to protect victims and witnesses from retaliatory lawsuits and to encourage reporting of misconduct. Another possible issue is the bill’s fee-shifting and treble-damages provision, which is relatively strong and could deter defamation suits but also raises the stakes for plaintiffs who believe they were falsely accused.