What is the difference between libel and slander in Oklahoma?

Education For Democratic Living
Although the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, there is a substantial difference between libel and slander under Oklahoma law.

Do you know what the difference is? You need to. Read on to find out if you are right.

Libel is the written word. Letters, newspapers, blogs, Facebook and the like are tools than can be used to libel someone.

Slander is the spoken word. The gossip you share about your church, your employer or your rival for affection from the opposite sex are all means through which someone could be slandered.

Both libel and slander are sometimes referred to as “defamation.”

Check back here tomorrow for the explanation of what it takes to defame someone.


Posted by Shawn Roberts

On this blog, I write about and try to answer practical Oklahoma legal questions. My focus and most experience is in estate planning and business issues including Oklahoma non-compete law. I make a living as an attorney in the law firm I founded, Shawn J. Roberts, P.C. in Oklahoma City. I live in Edmond with my wife Amy and my two children, Sam (19) and David (11). We live precisely in the path of where the "wind comes sweeping down the plains."