The Legal implications of violence denunciations on social media platforms

Social media platforms are increasingly used by random people to report an act and denounce it as a “violence” they have been subjected to. Some of these denunciations lead to lawsuits brought by the publicly accused person against the denouncing person. Whether it be on the grounds of defamation or hate speech, the initial denunciation of violence is then labeled, itself, in a reverse fashion, an act of “violence”.

The goal of my research is to analyze how courts categorize these denunciations and autonomous framings of violence. Ultimately, this analysis aims to render more transparent, and perhaps foreseeable, the distinction between what courts deem a legitimate participation to public discourse in the form of online violence denunciation, and what courts deem to be an illegitimate and illegal use of free speech and of one’s autonomy in the designation of violence.

My research in comparative law will benefit from a fellowship at Stanford University. Indeed, being present locally makes it possible to access court files, to engage with the local legal community combating or encouraging these lawsuits and to better grasp the specificities of American free speech, as close as possible to where these social media platforms prosper.