Louisiana Revised Statutes & Codes
La. Rev. Stat. § 13:3602 (2026)
Whenever any civil suit for slander, defamation, or for a libel, shall be instituted in any court of this state, it shall be lawful for the defendant to plead in justification the truth of the slanderous, defamatory or libelous words or matter, for the uttering or publishing of which he may be sued; and in the trial of the issue in such suit, to maintain and prove his plea by all legal evidence.
✓ current as of May 2026
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§3602. Pleading and proof of truth as justification for defamation
Whenever any civil suit for slander, defamation, or for a libel, shall be instituted in any court of this state, it shall be lawful for the defendant to plead in justification the truth of the slanderous, defamatory or libelous words or matter, for the uttering or publishing of which he may be sued; and in the trial of the issue in such suit, to maintain and prove his plea by all legal evidence.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 23
cases (2 in the last 5 years), 1958–2024 · leading case: Brungardt v. Summitt, 7 So. 3d 879 (La. Ct. App. 2009).
Brungardt v. Summitt, 7 So. 3d 879 (La. Ct. App. 2009). “R.S. 13:3602, Mrs. Brungardt did not file any opposing affidavit that she personally knew that Mr.”
Mitchell v. Villien, 19 So. 3d 557 (La. Ct. App. 2009). “R.S. 13:3602; see also Otero v. Ewing, 165 La.”
Union Serv. & Maint. Co. v. Powell, 393 So. 2d 94 (La. 1980). “1, § 22: "All courts shall be open, and every person shall have an adequate remedy by *100 due process of law and justice, administered without denial, partiality, or unreasonable delay, for injury to him in his person, property, reputation, or other rights.”
Brannan v. Wyeth Labs., Inc., 526 So. 2d 1101 (La. 1988). “R.S. 13:3602; Deshotel v. Thistlethwaite, 240 La.”
Huxen v. Villasenor, 798 So. 2d 209 (La. Ct. App. 2001). “LSA-R.S. 13:3602; Brannan, 526 So.2d at 1105 .”
Madison v. Bolton, 102 So. 2d 433 (La. 1958). “9); (b) fair comment and criticism, whether constructive or derogatory, in the absence of malice, concerning the acts and conduct of persons in public life on matters of public concern —sometimes termed the doctrine of qualified privilege — but not an available defense where…”
Hopkins v. Keith, 348 So. 2d 999 (La. Ct. App. 1977). “(6) Prior to publication of the articles in question, reporter Bill Keith asked Clerk of Court Ed Crump about the effect of a bond forfeiture and was told by the Clerk that a bond forfeiture constituted a conviction.”
Lyons v. Knight, 65 So. 3d 257 (La. Ct. App. 2011). “LSA-R.S. 13:3602. The Louisiana Constitution of 1974 guarantees redress for defamation injury in Art.”
Aranyosi v. Delchamps, Inc., 739 So. 2d 911 (La. Ct. App. 1999). “LSA-R.S. 13:3602; [6] Brannan, 526 So.2d at 1105 .”
Lemke v. Keiser & Auzenne, LLC, 922 So. 2d 690 (La. Ct. App. 2006). “-R.S. 13:3602." Id. at 99 . We have further concluded that the question of whether the qualified privilege rule will apply to an individual's statements made during litigation hinges on whether the alleged defamatory statements are material to the ongoing litigation so that it…”
Deshotel v. Thistlethwaite, 121 So. 2d 222 (La. 1960). “R.S. 13:3602; Madison v. Bolton, 234 La. 997 , 102 So.”
Thompson v. St. Amant, 196 So. 2d 255 (La. 1967). “As it is settled in Louisiana that the truth of a defamatory remark is generally a valid defense in a civil suit for defamation, it becomes necessary to decide initially if the remarks concerning Thompson were true. If they are shown to be true that would ordinarily end the case.”
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