Which form of defamation involves oral statements?

Which form of defamation involves oral statements?

• A. Libel
• B. Slander
• C. Tort
• D. Statutory Law

Answer: (B)

Oral defamation is called slander, which precisely matches the form described in the question. When someone makes a false statement about another person aloud to third parties and that statement harms the person’s reputation, it’s slander. Libel, by contrast, is written defamation, not spoken. Defamation is a kind of tort—a civil wrong—but that term describes the category of remedy, not the form of the statement. Statutory law is law created by legislators, not a type of defamation. So the form that involves spoken statements is slander.

Oral defamation is called slander, which precisely matches the form described in the question. When someone makes a false statement about another person aloud to third parties and that statement harms the person’s reputation, it’s slander. Libel, by contrast, is written defamation, not spoken. Defamation is a kind of tort—a civil wrong—but that term describes the category of remedy, not the form of the statement. Statutory law is law created by legislators, not a type of defamation. So the form that involves spoken statements is slander.