Regulatory
Anti-SLAPP
Definition
Legislation allowing early dismissal of litigation brought to silence public participation or speech on matters of public interest, often with costs awarded against the claimant.
Why it matters
SLAPP stands for strategic lawsuit against public participation, meaning a claim whose purpose is the cost and delay it imposes rather than the remedy it seeks. Anti-SLAPP statutes let a defendant apply for dismissal at the outset, before the expense of full disclosure, and shift the burden to the claimant to show the case has merit.
The mechanism appears in gambling disputes wherever reputation and investigation meet. A company suing over a report about its conduct may face an anti-SLAPP application arguing the report concerned a matter of public interest; the claimant then has to demonstrate a probability of success far earlier than ordinary procedure requires.
Coverage is uneven. Protection is strong in some jurisdictions and absent in others, so the same claim may be dismissed early in one forum and proceed for years in another, which makes the choice of venue unusually consequential.
The bottom line
Anti-SLAPP laws test the purpose of a lawsuit before its merits. Where they apply, suing your critics becomes a decision with an early and expensive gate.