SLAPP

What Does SLAPP Mean in a Text?

The Quick Answer

SLAPP means "Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation." It is a lawsuit intended to intimidate and silence critics by burdening them with legal costs, even if the lawsuit lacks legal merit.

More Details

SLAPPs are lawsuits alleging defamation that are brought for the purpose of silencing, intimidating, or harassing critics for speaking out, usually on matters of public interest. Rather than going to court to seek justice, SLAPP filers seek to drain the target's financial resources and their motivation to continue. The term SLAPP was coined by Professors George W. Pring and Penelope Canan in their book SLAPPs: Getting Sued for Speaking Out (1996).

SLAPPs are effective because even a meritless lawsuit may cost a lot of money to defend and could drag on for years. A number of countries and US states already have anti-SLAPP laws in place, to prevent such abuse of the judicial process. In the EU and UK anti-SLAPP legislation is close to being approved. Check out the Public Participation Project's website for examples of SLAPPs and anti-SLAPP rulings.

In Spanish, a SLAPP is a "Demanda Estratégica contra la Participación Pública."

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SLAPPs are brought to silence, intimidate, or harass critics.

Summary of Key Points

SLAPP
Definition:	Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation
Type:	Acronym
Guessability:	4: Difficult to guess
Typical Users:	Adults

An Academic Look at SLAPP

• NASA - "National Aeronautics and Space Administration."
• UNICEF - "United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund."

Acronyms are often used as shorthand in many professional fields, such as technology, business, medicine, and government, as well as in general chat. They can help save time and space when communicating, especially when talking about complex or technical information. They differ from initialism abbreviations, which are pronounced using their individual letters. For example:

• BYO - "Bring Your Own."
• GV - "Good Vibe."

Example of SLAPP Used in a Text

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