Author sues over bad review

The New York Times reports on an odd lawsuit in France, in which the recipient of a bad book review filed a criminal libel charge. Karin N. Calvo-Goller, a senior lecturer at the Academic Center of Law and Business in Israel and the author of “The Trial Proceedings of the International Criminal Court,” is arguing that the review could damage her reputation. According to The Times:

The reviewer, Thomas Weigend, a law professor at the University of Cologne, adopted a measured and patiently condescending tone. He said the book “meticulously covers all relevant topics,” and he praised its occasional “analytical nuggets.” But he faulted the book for “rehashing the existing legal set-up” and questioned Ms. Calvo-Goller’s “conceptual grasp” of some matters.

But Calvo-Goller, apparently, did not find the tone of the so mild, and so took it straight to court:

“I am aware of the extent of freedom of expression under the First Amendment,” she wrote to the site’s editor, Joseph Weiler, a law professor at New York University. “However, the extent of that freedom ends where its exercise damages the reputation of an individual.”

(Apparently she didn't read this report, which says that bad publicity may in fact boost sales.)