Hollywood Studios Use Free Speech Law to Beat Idea Theft Suits

Hollywood giants accused of stealing ideas from writers often play a powerful free speech card to freeze lawsuits in a way attorneys say has severely tilted the scales against creatives in California.

That card is an anti-SLAPP motion under the state’s law against “strategic lawsuits against public participation.” It pauses lawsuits that implicate free speech and forces plaintiffs to show they can win the case near the outset. Attorneys say it erects a steep hill for creators to climb: there’s limited discovery to prove their claims have merit, a denial can immediately be appealed and further delay the lawsuit, and ...