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New York ruling a 'threat' to authors

21.12.07

New York's highest court has decided that a state law cannot help an American author block a libel verdict brought against her in London by a Saudi billionaire over her book Funding Evil: How Terrorism is Financed — and How to Stop It, reports the International Herald Tribune.

New York's Court of Appeals had been asked by a federal court if a state law, which establishes jurisdiction for almost anyone who does business in New York, could protect the author. It ruled the law does not apply to this case.

The unanimous decision interpreting a New York law now goes to a federal court. There, author Rachel Ehrenfeld of Manhattan has sought to combat what her attorney argued was a chilling effect on free speech by the billionaire, Khalid Salim A. Bin Mahfouz. The Saudi businessman has sued more than two dozen times over writings on terrorism and those who fund it, including Ehrenfeld's 2003 book.

"The chill continues," said Ehrenfeld's attorney, Daniel Kornstein of Manhattan. Kornstein said the businessman has not tried to collect on his judgment, which includes an apology and a halt on book sales. But he said the London court verdict is a threat to authors.


International Herald Tribune

CUP Rachel Ehrenfeld Khalid Salim A Bin Mahfouz

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