The chair of Iowa’s House Judiciary Committee says one of his priorities this legislative session is passing an anti-SLAPP law. SLAPPs, or Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation, are lawsuits intended to censor and intimidate critics.
Rep. Steven Holt, R-Denison, wants Iowa to join 34 states with anti-SLAPP laws to protect the press and public. He says his interest stems from a 2017 lawsuit against the Carroll Times Herald, which reported on a local cop having inappropriate relations with minors.
A judge dismissed the lawsuit, but the newspaper incurred over $100,000 in legal fees.
“This has the potential of putting small newspapers, small radio stations, those sorts of things, out of business.”
Attorneys for Iowa pollster Ann Selzer have accused President Donald Trump and others of filing SLAPP lawsuits over an election poll that showed Trump trailing in the presidential race.
Holt says an anti-SLAPP law in Iowa would help defendants quickly dismiss meritless lawsuits and have their legal fees paid by the plaintiff. Similar bills have passed in the House in previous sessions but not in the Senate.
Holt made his remarks Tuesday on IPR’s River to River.