Opinion Any actual Lawyers (USA) here ?

[johndhi]

You don’t have to be a lawyer to know that there is zero case here. Cleared or not = it’s Dom’s opinion . Can’t sue his nose or take it to trial due to what it smelled lol

According to ts quote, dom didn't say I thought he smelled, he said he did smell. Statement of fact. Potentially in scope for a defamation claim but definitely subjective and unlikely to win

 

[amok attitude]

Cruz is pathetic on this one.
"He smells cigaretts", so fucking what, its forbidden to smoke in florida nowadays ???
And when it comes to alcohol, he has 0 proof and his claim is backep up by nobody right now.
On the contrary, his sorry ass was mopping the floor and everybody saw it, the ref saved him more than anything.

 

[christer]

Im an international master of law and lawyering and I can confirm that Cruz is in very big trouble. His best hope is a plea bargain in my expert opinion

 

[Joonyer]

He can't sue Dom for speaking his opinion. However, if the Peterson is cleared, the UFC should take action against Cruz (doubtful).

Sure he can. Opinion or not, defamation of character, libel and slander are all very real things. Personally I don't think Dom's words really carry that much weight. He was nearly decapitated moments before so he was pretty rattled, brain-wise. It was a pretty shitty thing to say, whether it's true or not, because you can't prove a damn thing. Lost a lot of respect for "no excuses" Cruz.

 

[DivineMind]

He certainly has a case. I've actually been to law school and based on what I saw and read there, the ref wins based on jurisprudence standards.

 

[shankmcgank]

You don’t have to be a lawyer to know that there is zero case here. Cleared or not = it’s Dom’s opinion . Can’t sue his nose or take it to trial due to what it smelled lol

So I can havw the opinion you're a child molester and state it on national television ?

 

[ineverpost]

You need to show damages and a state licensed ref is never reprimanded for anything. Dom is a salty crybaby. Get a close up of his face after the knee, it is the picture of brain damage.

 

[7437]

According to ts quote, dom didn't say I thought he smelled, he said he did smell. Statement of fact. Potentially in scope for a defamation claim but definitely subjective and unlikely to win

No? Thats not what defamation is. Your opinion can absolutely be defamation. You have to prove a bunch of things like malice and actual harm. There is no way that this will be a lawsuit. Its dumb.

 

[skysolo]

Salty Dom made a pretty serious accusation about Keith Peterson the referee.

"The guy smelled like alcohol and cigarettes, so who knows what he was doing.” said Cruz in a post fight interview.

Saying he smelled like alcohol is something that will likely be investigated by the athletic commission and/or UFC.

This is the type of shit that causes a lot of problems and can lead to undue stress, negativity and loss of reputation, maybe even his job.

Peterson will likely be questioned about this and have some sleepless nights until he is either cleared, or fired if Cruz's statement is true.

Cruz made his accusation on television, likely seen by millions of people around the world.

That's a pretty shitty and serious accusation to level at someone, especially at the top level of the sport.

For the lawyers, if Peterson is cleared, can he sue Cruz afterwards for slander ? If not, why ?

View attachment 767485

If Cruz can be sued, why hasn't any one sued Dana for his "slander"?

Did you make posts about Dana calling Greg Jackson a "sports killer" or Amanda Nunes a "coward"?

 

[ObamaPhoneLady]

No.

A few guys LARP as lawyers though.

 

[tenniswhiz]

He can't sue Dom for speaking his opinion. However, if the Peterson is cleared, the UFC should take action against Cruz (doubtful).

True.
If Dom said he smelled like shit, it would be the same.

 

[PHATV]

I don’t practice tort law but I would guess no because it was an opinion. I also believe there is an element that has to do with “truth”. So maybe he did smell like cigs and that nullifies it. I would have to research it but I highly doubt there would be any tangible damage to reputation. I haven’t studied this stuff since I took the BAR years ago.

I'm not a lawyer, but for Keith Peterson to have any kind of a case, he would have to prove that Cruz knew the information was false when he said it, right? That's why it's so hard to prove libel/slander accusations as far as I know or remember.

 

[ObamaPhoneLady]

Also could be from hand sanitizer

 

[PHATV]

Also could be from hand sanitizer

You know what, if he's a smoker and is able to hide somewhere and catch one between bouts he's working (I don't know how it works), this may be the most plausible way for Cruz to try to save face and not look like such a douche. Assuming they're all using hand sanitizer and Keith did as well. Seems like a good hypothesis.

But still very, very douchey for Cruz to have brought it up at all.

 

[PHATV]

EVERYBODY smells like alcohol these days... it's called disinfectant, brah!

Still, early stoppage.

One of the last 3 shots or so as he is in turtle mode clips his chin, sparks him out and he face plants into the canvas. Ref made the decision right then I think and so I've got no problem with that stoppage. Flash KO in the midst of that onslaught is a good stoppage. He did come back and start to try to stand as the ref moved in, but his goose was cooked when he got sparked, I think. I noticed it live and on the replays.

 

[JosephTessaro]

I wonder why he didn't say something in the post fight interview. When they were announcing the winner, Cruz pulled his arm away from Peterson and mouthed "Fuck you" and something else after.

I think Cruz is just pissed off that the fight was called and he was on the short end of the stick.

 

[Broke Lester]

Cruz is a dick, that ref is actually one of the better refs.

 

[vengeful]

I'm no lawyer but this seems to fall under "slander per se" which would be a statement that is so injurious that it causes harm even thugh the harm is hard to quantify with a specific dollar amount.

Claiming an official of a sporting event is smelling like alcohol (implying under the influence) is dangerous to this man's reputation and questions his professionalism and capability to handle the job.

 

[vengeful]

I'm not a lawyer, but for Keith Peterson to have any kind of a case, he would have to prove that Cruz knew the information was false when he said it, right? That's why it's so hard to prove libel/slander accusations as far as I know or remember.

No, you don't need to prove the person knew it was false, you just need to prove they made a statement recklessly or with actual malice.

 

[Oceanmachine]

I predict many NON US lawyers will reply. Like right now and offer their opinion