US Supreme Court turns away casino mogul Wynn's bid to challenge NY Times v. Sullivan defamation rule

John Kruzel - Reuters - 24/03
The U.S. Supreme Court turned away on Monday a bid by casino mogul Steve Wynn to roll back defamation protections established in its landmark 1964 ruling in the case New York Times v. Sullivan - a standard that has been questioned by President Donald Trump and two of its own conservative justices.
  • Casino mogul Steve Wynn sued AP news wire for defamation
  • Trump, Justices Thomas and Gorsuch question 1964 precedent
WASHINGTON, March 24 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court turned away on Monday a bid by casino mogul Steve Wynn to roll back defamation protections established in its landmark 1964 ruling in the case New York Times v. Sullivan - a standard that has been questioned by President Donald Trump and two of its own conservative justices.
The justices declined to hear an appeal by Wynn, former CEO of Wynn Resorts (WYNN.O), opens new tab, of a decision by Nevada's top court to dismiss his defamation suit against the Associated Press and one of its journalists under a state law meant to safeguard the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment protections for freedom of speech.

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The Supreme Court in its New York Times v. Sullivan ruling and subsequent decisions set a standard that in order to win a libel suit, a public figure must demonstrate the offending statement was made with "actual malice," meaning with knowledge it was false or with reckless disregard as to whether it was false. That standard has since been adopted in a number of state laws across the country, including in Nevada.
Lawyers for Wynn expressed regret that the justices declined to take up the appeal.
"The fact that media outlets are free to publish demonstrably fa...
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