Petro-Lubricant Testing Labs., Inc. v. Adelman

*461**243Defamation law balances two competing interests-an individual's right to protect his reputation from unjustified and false aspersions and our citizens' right to free expression and robust debate in our democratic society. Because an informed public is a prerequisite to a functioning democracy, our common law provides special safeguards to protect speech from unwarranted attacks through the legal process. At issue in this case are two common law doctrines that protect speech from overreaching lawsuits: the single publication rule and the fair report privilege.

Generally, the single…