A federal judge Monday ordered Baltimore to pay a woman more than $44,000 for having withheld half the money she was owed in settlement of her police brutality claim because she had publicly criticized officers in violation of the agreement’s ...

Tagged with: attorney's fees first amendment free speech non-disparagement out-of-court settment police brutality

The Baltimore City Council unanimously passed the third reading of a bill Monday that would prohibit non-disparagement agreements, also referred to as “gag orders,” in police brutality and misconduct cases. The bill aims to prohibit settlements with the city that prevent claimants from discussing their experiences with police misconduct in public and with the press.

Tagged with: city council gag orders non-disparagement

Parties entering into out-of-court settlements would be well advised to include a provision expressly barring the other side from making disparaging statements about them in subsequent court proceedings.

Tagged with: litigation privilege non-disparagement