Panel advances 'Speak Your Truth' Act, raising civil standard for defamation suits involving sexual-assault survivors

The House Judiciary Committee on May 13 voted to release House Bill 355, the "Speak Your Truth" Act, a bill intended to shield survivors of sexual assault, harassment and discrimination from retaliatory defamation suits by raising the standard a plaintiff must meet to recover damages.

Sponsor Representative Morrison framed the bill as a measure to protect survivors who speak openly about their experiences. Morrison said the bill applies to civil cases only and includes an amendment changing mandatory-damage language to discretionary language so courts retain discretion over relief. "This act encourages survivors to come forward," Morrison said, adding that the bill is intended to reduce strategic, retaliatory lawsuits that can be emotionally and financially devastating.

Victoria Burke, an attorney and adjunct law professor who described herself as the architect of the Speaker Truth movement, testified as an expert witness and said she selected the malice standard to align with anti-SLAPP and public-figure jurisprudence and to avoid chilling protected speech. "This is not a bar. This is a defense," Burke said, adding that survivors who prevail may recover attorney fees and actual damages under the draft.

Representatives questioned the malice standard at length. Several committee members expressed concern about how an indigent person wrongly accused could obtain counsel to bring a defamation suit and whether the malice standard would make it difficult for wrongly accused people to obtain remedies. Representative Frank Cook said Delaware has strong guardrails and asked whether the bill understates existing protections; Representative Phillips and others emphasized that false reports are a small percentage of all reports but that fear of retaliation deters reporting.

Public testimony included an in-person statement from Becca Totto of YWCA Delaware urging the committee to focus on survivors and describing the bill as trauma-informed, and virtual comments from Emma Davidson Tribbs (National Women's Defense League) and Francisca Moreno (board president, Delaware Alliance Against Violence) in support. Moreno noted low reporting rates and urged the committee to help survivors speak without fear of costly litigation.

Representative Romer moved to release the bill; the committee called the roll and the bill received sufficient affirmative votes to be reported out for floor consideration. Committee members expressed a desire for additional education and follow-up conversations specifically about the malice standard and remedies for indigent accused individuals.

Next steps: committee staff will circulate HB 355 for signatures and post the committee report; sponsors and staff indicated they will continue discussions on standards and implementation outside the hearing.