Man Must Pay Ex-Partner Tens of Thousands for Defamatory WhatsApp Messages

A family court has ordered a man to pay his former partner tens of thousands of shekels in damages for sending defamatory messages about her on WhatsApp. The woman, who is many years older than the man, had a relationship with him that lasted on and off for about two years. She sued him, claiming that messages he sent to dozens of people in a WhatsApp group and to his friends personally, accusing her of having affairs, constituted libel and damaged her good name.

The ex-partner argued that private messages do not constitute "publication" under the Defamation Law and that messages sent to close friends were merely to vent his pain. However, the court rejected this, ruling that even messages sent to close friends meet the legal definition of publication. The court stated that attributing sexual relations, infidelity, or promiscuous behavior to a woman is considered defamation if the person is identifiable and the publication could humiliate or degrade them in the eyes of a reasonable person.

The court found that the man failed to prove his allegations about his ex-partner's sexual conduct, and therefore the publications were not truthful. The court emphasized that even if the information were true, it concerned intimate details that are afforded heightened protection against publication. The judge noted the "mental gaps between the parties" and their differing interpretations of the relationship, with the woman stating it was "just for sex" from the start, while the man considered it his "whole world."

Ultimately, the court ruled that the messages presented the woman in a degrading and humiliating manner, portraying her as promiscuous and violating her privacy. The man was ordered to pay 25,000 shekels for the messages sent to the WhatsApp group and an additional 5,000 shekels for private messages to friends, totaling 30,000 shekels. He was also ordered to pay 11,000 shekels in legal costs. The court considered the age difference, the man's young age at the time, his financial situation, and a written apology in its compensation decision.

An attorney not involved in the case commented that the ruling underscores that ending a relationship does not negate the right to a good name and privacy, and that even messages to close friends can be considered defamation. He added that the right to share breakup pain does not grant immunity from liability for harming an ex-partner's reputation.